Days of Our Lives
by Lee Totema
Summary: Huh. I was driving home from work and now I'm in Dragon age world. It's 3 years before the Fifth Blight. So what do I do? Be the handmaiden to Oriana and hope I don't die. Self Insert. Multiple Origins. Rated T for mild swearing and adult themes. Cover Pic by yours truly. Rewrite Days of Our Start is up!
1. Que?

**Shout out to Middle of Nowhere by Wyolake for inspiring me to create my own self insert!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Dragon Age or anything else I mention in this story, whether they be songs or other video games. Each and every single item belongs to their creator. All I own is my crazy self.**

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Day 1

So this has been a rather hectic day. Well more like bordering the unbelievable and absolutely unfathomable. That's a word right? Anyway let's start at the beginning. Dear Diary...no that sounds way too girly. Dear Journal...nope, still not it. Ok, Journal, are you ready to record my sanity?

I was at work. It was a pretty slow day, not too many deserts to make. I finally clocked out and was going over to my car. Simple enough right? I was finally headed home for some decent rest. I got out of the garage and started making my way home. The street was all green lights until I hit a red light. Cars were going and I was first in the lane! Woo! Anyway the light turned green and I was the first one out. Then I heard the horn of an eighteen wheeler coming straight for me. I did a quick side glance and everything turned to slow motion. I saw it coming toward me, driver side. I looked at the panicked face of the driver as tonnes of steel drove to where I was.

The guy had t-boned me. I think I had a second to feel agonizing pain and then nothing. Blackness. At first I thought I was dead but how could I keep thinking if I was dead? And it was extremely dark. Was this it? There was no heaven only complete darkness? Would I have to spend eternity just floating aimlessly with just my thoughts until I became one with the universe? It would have been a sad place to end my life. It didn't stop there. I felt that I had weight now. I could feel the ground with my hands and my eyes were still closed. I opened my eyes to an unfamiliar landscape. It was faded, blurry. Nothing was really focused. I rubbed my eyes. My contacts should have been in place from when I thought I died. It was a weird place with a green sky and various islands in the distance. They were floating islands. I went from lying on the ground to sitting up and looked at myself. My cook pants were gone as well as my work shoes. Instead I had on my regular jeans, one of my t-shirts, and white tennis shoes.

It was extremely odd place to be. At first I thought this was heaven but where was everybody? Not only that this place seemed familiar to me, like I've been here before. I couldn't remember where though. I looked everywhere from where I was sitting. I got up and looked around some more. The ground was fluctuating from green, to light brown, to gray. The color wouldn't just stay still. It was gravel and there were a few dead trees around me as well. I was standing on top of a very small clearing and I had no idea what to do.

So I sat down and waited. Then waited some more. Finally I got extremely bored just waiting. I stood up and started to walk. I noticed that there was a small path leading out of the clearing so I decided to follow it. As I started to walk the path I felt something was watching me. I looked back but there was nothing there. As I turned to walk the path again, a bright light was suddenly in front of me. I flinched back and shielded my eyes until I was able to focus on it. It looked like a halo. A floating halo that was really, really bright. For some odd reason, I didn't feel frightened. I felt protected. I tried to reached for it with one of my hands, but I wasn't able to touch it. The ground wasn't supporting me anymore. I started to fall down. I tried to grab at anything, to no avail. I looked at the halo as the ground was swallowing me up. I asked it for help and then nothing.

I woke up with my heart thumping in my chest from what happened in that strange place. There was a ceiling above me but it looked different. I wasn't able to focus on the details because of what I just experienced. I was on a bed that felt off. The covers weren't as soft and the bed didn't have the springiness. I started to look around before pressure behind my eyes made me groan. I hated getting migraines. I covered my eyes and tried to push the pressure away.

"Ah, you are awake?" Someone said next to me. I took down my hands from my eyes and there was an old man before me. He looked so familiar but I couldn't put my mind to it. My migraine was hurting way too much. Where are acetaphetamines when you need them? I groaned again and tried to push my eyeballs inside my skull. I knew it wasn't really going to do much, but it felt good. "Here, drink this." He pushed a ceramic bowl towards me. I looked at it. I really shouldn't be accepting weird drinks from even weirder old men. Still, I didn't really have nothing to lose and it could really help. So I took the drink and took a good swig. It tasted like honey and grass. I gagged and coughed but I was able to drink half of that disgusting concoction.

Strangely enough, my migraine started to lessen. I blinked away the pressure. I was able to see again and started to examine where I was. I saw the fire from the fireplace made shadows around the room, bathing the room in low light. There were bookshelves with many books that made me itch to get up and look at them. There were tapestries against the walls with designs I've never seen before. Paintings were on the walls and rugs on the floor. I noticed that my clothing was also different. A simple linen shirt and brown pants. The place looked very much like medieval times. After examining the room, I got a good look at the old man. First I was surprised at the fact that I was able to see extremely clearly without any help since I had worn contacts for years. Second, Holy Jesus! Aldous was right freaking in front of me! Aldous the man that tutored the kids at the Cousland's castle. Aldous, the one you speak to to learn of the Cousland family history. He was right there in front of me.

I thought this was a dream. A really good dream that was detailed to the t. I've had dreams like this before where I thought it wasn't a dream. I dug my nails into my other hand to see if it was a dream. It hurt. I pinched again and that hurt as well. This was no dream, this was real.

So I acted like any normal person would act in this situation: I panicked and pressed myself firmly against the bed frame, and pulled the covers to my chin. I looked around some more. The walls were made of cobblestone. The fabric that I was using as a cover, felt course to the touch. I couldn't believe it. This was a video game in my world and yet I was in it. This was Dragon Age. Freaking Dragon Age! This couldn't be happening! How could this be happening?!

"Calm down, calm down. You just had a scare that's all. Of course anyone would be scared when there were mabari hounds chasing after you." Aldous chuckled. He had the perfect abuelito voice. It calmed me down slightly.

"M-Mabari Hounds?" I squeaked.

"Yes. It was an odd sight. A young woman covered in blood, running away from hounds in the courtyard. We were able to stop them from mauling you. You were very badly hurt. May I ask your name?" Aldous said. At this point I wondered if I should give my nickname or my full name. I decided nickname. There was no way anyone could get my real name right.

"Nia." I said. The absurdity of it all came crashing down on me. I was in a video game. I wanted to pull my hair out. I wanted to rock back and forth and just keep on repeating, 'it's just a dream.' But it wasn't a dream. This was real.

"Um...can I ask a weird question?" I said, grabbing the covijas and wrapping them around me.

"Of course." Aldous said, pouring more of that sick, pasty green stuff in a smaller bowl.

"Well more like two questions. When and where am I?" I asked. He tried giving me the bowl again but I politely declined.

"Well this is the year 9:27 Dragon. You are in Highever Castle." Aldous answered. I gaped at him some more and was stupefied enough to accept the bowl of honey grass paste. I gagged again. The taste was horrendous. Aldous was kind enough to answer more of my questions.

I limped across the main gates, none of the guards were able to see me or didn't see me go through. I was a bloody mess and my clothes were in tatters. I limped through the yard when the mabaris found me. Aldous explained that I tried to run away, quietly asking for help. That's when the youngest Cousland, and future Grey Warden saved me. He told the mabaris to stand down and caught me as I fell from the blood loss. I fainted and was carried to the Cousland's healer. They took off my ruined clothing, washed me down, and healed all my injuries. Aldous told me that I suffered a lot of cuts and bruises but no broken bones. Those would have took a while to tend to. After healing me, a servant girl had dressed me and Aldous offered to look after me while the healer rested. After explaining everything, Aldous told me to get some sleep since it was late at night and he went to his own room which was just a short walk away.

So here I am, writing all of this down on a piece of parchment that I requested from Aldous. Writing with a quill and ink is difficult. I need to record all of this to make sure I'm not going completely insane.

Anyway, here's to day one and my sanity.

God Help Me.

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**Edited. Please Review.**


	2. That means What?

Day 2

So day 2 of my incredible journey to...something. At this point I'm not sure. I might as well just follow the basic storyline. I don't even know if I'll be able to go home at this point. Still, today was a pretty good day. A little unbelievable though. I must be a lucky bastard. So to recap what has happened so far:

I woke up in the same room that I was in from last night. The fire was low but it wasn't that cold in the room. I got up from my bed. There was a table with two chairs near my bed with boots and socks. I put them on and just explored the room for a bit. I went to the bookshelves and took a book down. The writing was neat and evenly spaced. I found it amazing since I can't write straight on white paper. The book I picked up talked a bit about the city, when it was founded, some of the history and stuff. I just looked through it, not really focused on reading it. I heard a knock from the room and Aldous came in.

"Oh good you're awake. I have brought you something to eat." He set down a plate with some bread, eggs, and a bit of milk. I looked at it a bit unsure of what to make of it all. I thought it was weird they were treating me like a guest when I trespassed on their castle. "Oh don't look so frightened. We are still trying to figure out how you came in here, but for now, please eat." I nodded and sat down to eat.

"So what now? Am I going to get thrown out? I didn't mean to come into the castle." I said, spooning out the insides of my bread, eating it, and putting the eggs inside to make a sandwich. Aldous chuckled.

"No. Although you gave us a scare, we don't believe you came in here to steal anything. In fact, we think that you just came in for help. We do wonder where you have come from. The things on your person are...very foreign." I almost choked on my milk. He must have meant the things I had on when I came in this world.

"Um, I'm not from around here. Truthfully I have no idea how I got here in the first place. I was going home from work and...I got into an accident." I said. I omitted the car and the 18 wheeler since Aldous would have no idea what I was talking about.

"It must have been quite an accident to have hurt yourself that badly."

"I think I should be dead by now because of the accident but here I am, thank...the Maker." I said. I had to make sure not to mention God. Sometimes people get touchy about worshiping other gods around here. Exalted marches and all.

"Well if you are feeling better, then how about a tour of the castle. For now, you will remain here as my guest until you feel well enough to go home." Aldous said.

"Wait." He looked at me. "Well, about home. The accident? It made me come here. I'm not...Fereldan. I come from somewhere very far away." He stared at me hard and I felt that he was sure to kick me out this time.

"Hmm odd. Do you think magic may have been the cause of your transportation? Do you have any enemies that would want you out of the way?" I blinked at how calmly Aldous was taking this. Well magic is pretty common here.

"Well I can think of a coworker that doesn't really like me but to almost kill me? No."

"Then are you a mage? Did you protect yourself by transporting yourself here?" Aldous said with a look. Oh right, mages are considered extremely dangerous.

"What? No, no, I'm not a mage. You can have a templar come here and check me out. Do that...weird thing they do with your head. I'm for it if you want to go ahead and check it out." Aldous laughed at me.

"Oh don't be so shocked. Don't worry. I don't know how you came here and I don't believe that you will cause any harm. For now, let's go out into the castle and then we'll decide what do." I nodded and followed him out of the room. The light hit me stronger after being in a dark room for so long. I blinked a few time for my eyes to adjust before following Aldous. There were a few guards here and there that nodded toward Aldous and gave me a confusing look.

I felt awkward. Shouldn't I be locked up in the dungeon? I know Aldous said that now I'm his guest but that was, I don't know, weird right? I mean I was an unknown woman with blood all over her sneaking around the castle. Sure I wasn't stealing anything but I shouldn't be so chummy with the resident tutor. I recognized a bit of the layout of the castle, but it was way bigger than what you see in the game. The walls were extremely high and the stones seemed to shine. Various doors were everywhere leading to somewhere. Aldous showed me the courtyard and the gardens that led out outside. They were huge with a few elves working to take care of it. We passed by a few elven servants with their head down. Some actually just looked at me coolly. I realized that I'm about as tall as a male elf. I'm 154 cm so I'm pretty short, even by normal standards back in the real world.

"How do feel? Do you feel light headed, weak?" Aldous asked as he was showing me where the library was.

"No I feel well-"

"Oren!" As Aldous and I were walking, came this little boy with dark hair and pale eyes. He had the eyes of his father and was a little on the chubby side. Granted, I came 3 years before the blight happened. Oren who was about 5 or six is now a cute toddler of about 2 or 3. He ran toward us and tripped. He fell on his hands and knees and started to cry. That inner mom in me reacted. I went over to where Oren was and came down to his level. I was a bit worried if he would start crying harder, since I'm stranger. In order to calm Oren down, I wiggled my fingers with sounds effects. He gave me a look but then I made him laugh which made me chuckle as well. He didn't look anything like my son, but he reminded me of him.

Oriana came running after him. Her hair was longer this time and wasn't in those weird various ponytail things. I kept looking at him with my head at weird angles, looking away, then looking back with a smile or a goofy face. He laughed and clapped his hands. I made my hand do more sound effects as they went toward him. I imagined them exploding all over his body and he burst with laughter. Oren was a bit ticklish. Oriana just watched me curiously.

"Oren." She said softly. He looked over.

"Mum!" He said and ran over to her. She lifted him up and I stood up. I fidgeted a bit and Aldous came up beside me.

"Good Morning, my lady." Aldous said, with a polite bow. I bowed alongside Aldous. I didn't want to insult Oriana accidentally.

"Good Morning Aldous. Is this the girl that was causing all that trouble yesterday?" Oriana asked. Oren was poking her face. It took some willpower not to laugh.

"Yes. This is Nia." Aldous said. "For now she is my guest until we can find a way to send her home."

"I'm sorry for everything that happened. I wasn't in my right mind." I said, and I really don't know how the freak I actually got here anyway.

"Oh, you don't have to worry about that. Do you remember anything from before?" Oriana asked. I shook my head. I kept my head low. I didn't want to insult someone by looking them at the eyes. Oriana laughed. "Oh you shouldn't be so formal with me. In fact, I know where your old clothes and items are. Would you like to join me?" I looked at Aldous and he motioned me to follow her. I said a polite good bye to Aldous. She put down Oren and I walked behind Oriana. She was pulling Oren by the hand.

"You really made the guards question their job yesterday. A weird blood soaked woman, not seen by anyone! You gave us all a shock." Oriana laughed.

"I feel shocked as well, my lady. I don't even remember how I even got here to be honest." I said. I tried to recollect my memories but all I could remember was the weird place with the halo. I couldn't remember anything that happened after. I don't know why either.

"Nothing at all?" She looked at me and I nodded. We walked through some door and she led me in a room where the elven servants were working on a few clothes. Oriana talked to an elf and she led Oriana where there was a bundle of fiber that were my clothes. They were torn in various places and I'm glad for the clothes I was wearing. I looked through the mangled pockets and nothing was there. The elf woman brought me another basket. Here were my other things that were in my pockets.

My phone, which didn't turn on. My wallet, with various cards and no money. Those cards were useless now. A pen and piping tools. I didn't need them though so I might as well give those to Nan. My bowl scraper, cook's hat, and apron. My notebook, with a few pages. Yep, nothing useful really. What do you expect from a pastry cook, a time machine clock? The elf looked at the items curiously.

My clothes were all garbage of course. I explained to Oriana about the white apron and hat. She sent them to be delivered to the kitchen staff. The wallet and phone I kept in a pocket I found in my pants. I'm going to have to hide these somewhere on the off chance I somehow get back home. I took the pen and notepad to write. It was small but I'll be able to write in it.

"Thank you so much. I thought I lost everything." I sincerely thanked Oriana. She looked at me strangely. "Is there something on my face, my lady?"

"I have a proposition for you. How would you like to be my handmaiden?" Oriana asked. If you're asking what that was, it's basically someone that helps a lady (or man) with various jobs. It could be doing their hair, or getting some clothes for them. Just a servant that's following them in the most simplest terms.

"You're handmaiden? Are you sure you don't want to pick someone else? There are bound to be others more qualified to take that position."

"But you are the only one that Oren has chosen. Do you accept the position or not?" I would be stupid not to.

"Yes I do accept the position. Thank you, my lady." I said, bowing to her. She asked a servant for a few sets of a uniform and she gave them to me.

"Follow me." I did and we went out of the room. "You are to wake early for your duties. You are responsible to dressing me to formal events and for events in the city. You are to care for Oren when I'm not available and tend to his needs as well. You are not to be dismissed until I tell you. Do you understand?"

"I understand, my lady." I really wondered why but I'm not going to push my luck.

"You will learn more about this position in the days to come. I will send someone to train you." Oriana led to where the servants quarters were. Most servants would go to their homes if they lived in the city. The ones that were not living in the city, lived in the castle. She led me to my quarters. It was a small room. A single bed mattress and a set of drawers.

"We shall meet later. For now, put away your things and your uniform. Someone will come get you momentarily." Oriana said and left me in the room.

I sighed. I took out my stuff and I put it in one of the drawers. I put away the rest of my uniforms in the other drawer.

Well this was the start of a new life I guess. I didn't expect anything like this to happen so soon. I thought I was going to be tossed out in the streets at the first opportunity. I got lucky, real lucky. After everything was all said and done, I took out my necklace. It was a silver rope chain with three things hanging off it. The virgin Mary in gold, the cross in silver with small diamonds, and my engagement ring from my husband. I looked at my hand. My gold ring was still on it. I'm surprised no one has even asked. Though, considering my circumstances leading me here, I can understand.

Day 5

I have been thoroughly trained. There was a little more to do on the whole handmaiden thing than I thought. I was basically Oriana's secretary. I made sure which events Oriana can go to, I take messages to her, and write messages back to the correspondents. I also participate in her pastimes like embroidering or painting. She didn't take up many hobbies though. As weird enough as it is in this world, she tried to take care of Oren as much as possible. It's weird because most nobles wouldn't personally attend to their kids. They would just give them to the nannies. It was actually sweet of Oriana to do it.

After I was trained, I finally put on the uniform. It looked really weird on me. It was a dark red skirt, with a brown apron around me. A long sleeve maroon shirt with a black corset. I had to do my hair up. I was considering cutting it short, but I just left it.

It's been a few days since I wrote in here. I had to make sure that I was keeping up on all of my duties, heh. Anyway, it wasn't that hard to be her lady-in-waiting. I'm always a very focused worker and I tried to do my best to do everything. Oriana wasn't necessarily bossy either. She was from Antiva which was this world's Italy but they spoke Spanish. The Spanish that I do speak is considered from the country, so I'm a redneck sort of. Weird since my actual family was in the city. Curse you mom for teaching me ghetto Spanish! Well, at least I'll be able to tell when someone from Antiva is insulting me.

I've also been babysitting Oren whenever Oriana and Fergus go out. He's such a good boy and so cute! My son should almost be his age now. Hopefully I'll be able to get the real date instead of these day entries.

I also was introduce to all the Couslands. Oriana had me set up some tea time for all of them besides Eren and Bryce. I got the room all set up with the tea and various deserts. They looked really good. Sugar cookies with a dash of powdered sugar on top, cookies with a jelly center, cookies with nuts, almond cookies, yep delicious. Eleanor and Bryce were already there. It was more of a family thing than anything. Oriana came dressed for the occasion. It wasn't that hard to learn how to dress her since I had some experience with formal dressing.

"Hello my love. Ah, I see your new handmaiden. She's quite a looker. Ow!" Fergus said. He went up to greet her and she pinched him after he made that comment. I bowed.

"My name is Nia. Please to meet you, my lord." I said. I actually sounded pretty formal. Go me. Fergus was a big guy in terms of muscle. Formal clothing fit him but no one can deny those muscles tend to bulge out. His hair isn't messy and he liked to have a little shadow on his face. Oriana told me how she wished he would shave every once in a while. Dark brown hair and dark green eyes? No wonder Oriana fell for him he was quite a looker.

"It's interesting that she chose you. I've been pushing her to accept one of the elves around the castle, but she just turned them all away." Eleanor explained, sipping her tea. I looked from Oriana to Eleanor. Eleanor had brighter green eyes and all of her hair has already turned dark grey. Her face didn't look gaunt either unlike in game. Eleanor's face is thin and she likes make up. That's her hobby but her skin was very fine. She stood taller than me but smaller than Fergus.

"That's because Oren didn't like any of them. If they're going to be taking care of me, they will also know my son." Oriana argued. I helped only with the tea when someone needed it. I just sat slightly away from them, sorting out the messages of Oriana. I heard some snippets of politics and gossip amongst them. I didn't really care for it. I'm not one for politics.

"Love, how about we go out into the marketplace? I want to show all of Highever the most beautiful woman of the age." Fergus said, kissing her hand. Oriana gave him a warm smile. I recognized that gaze. She loved him very much.

"Of course. Nia. You will keep watch over Oren while I'm gone. Come, I need to get ready." Oriana said. I bowed and took my leave after Oriana left. She wore a light blue dress with gold embroidering. I helped her with the corset and shoes. She looked stunning. Oren came stumbling over. He hugged her leg and she lifted him up. She kissed him on the head. He was babbling here and there. I found it endearing. He looked at me.

"Mia-Ni!" He said, his arms stretched to me. I took him and he kissed me.

"We'll be gone until evening. Be a good boy Oren. Nia" Oriana said. I walked her over to were Fergus was near the main gates. He was wearing some formal clothes as well. They weren't that red and gold gaudy stuff you usually saw in the game. This was more like a black and white outfit with minor gold embroidering. They went ahead in their carriage. I said hello to a few of the guards. They still didn't trust me considering how I got into the castle a few days ago. Oren and I went ahead to the gardens. I kept a close eye on him. Kids at this age still liked to put stuff in their mouths. The elves that were working were looking at him with a humorous gaze.

I had a few close calls with a few weeds and rocks, but everything worked out. We played the chasing game and I realized that it's hard running in this skirt. As I ran around a corner, Oren hot on my heels, I rammed right into someone. I bruised my face since he was decked in full armor. I landed on my butt which really hurt.

"Hey!" I said before Oren finally caught me. He hugged my face and started to scream and laugh.

"Oren!" The man said. Oren looked at him and started to said "Un, Un!" That's when I realized that this must be the younger Cousland, Eren. I knew about him from what Oriana told me. This was the first time I met him though. I got up and dust off my apron, not that it was dirty or something. I took a look at him. His hair wasn't as messy as Fergus'. His was straighter. He also had a goatee with mustache. It was trimmed neatly. Fergus and Eren really looked like one another. Oren wanted to get to me. I stretched out my hands to get Oren but Eren just looked at me.

"And you are? I don't think we hired another nanny..." He said. He sneered at me, sneered!

"No, but Oriana did get a handmaiden. I'm Nia, my lord." I bowed. He looked at me with a raised eyebrow. I just put on my best innocent face. Finally Oren started to cry and I gave him an expectant look. He gave him to me finally.

"Well, if what you're saying is true, I am Eren Cousland. Best that you shouldn't forget your position handmaiden." He said before he strutted, yes strutted, out of my vision. I rolled my eyes and forgot about that incident. The dusk started to settled and, after playing some more chasing games, Oren fell asleep on one of the floor. It was cute. I had him in my arms while an elf servant called Cyla led me to Oriana and Fergus' room. There was a big mattress and a smaller bed next to the wall. I assumed that was Oren's bed. I got the blanket that was resting on top and pulled it off. I put Oren on the bed and pulled the sheets over him. I learned early on that it got cold in the night. I didn't want him to get a cold so I made sure he was tucked in before going out.

Oriana and Fergus came in, giggling like early stage couples. Fergus' face was a bit pink. I bowed and Oriana gave me a few bags to carry. Fergus went off to find his brother and I followed her. She went to her room and saw Oren there. She ran her hand through his hair.

"Good job. Now, let's get me out of this tight dress." Oriana said. After helping her with the dress, she excused me for the night. I was going to just go and sleep, but I decided to visit Aldous. He was still in the study reading a few books.

"Good Evening Aldous." I said.

"Oh Nia. What are you doing here so late?" He asked. I just shrugged.

"I like to read." I said. "What do you have around here?"

"We have many books here, most concerning history and lore. We also have a few scandalous books that Oriana has shared with us if that is your preference."

"Oh, no, no. I can't even watch people kiss let alone read it."

"You're getting red."

"It's just my natural flush. Anything you'd recommend?" Aldous chuckled.

"For as long as I've tutored here, I've never once read everything the Couslands owned. Please, go through them if you'd like."

"Thanks." I went through some of the books. There were a few about magic surprisingly. Most of the books were of history though. I went through some of the books only for the writing. It looked so beautiful the way they write. All I have is my chicken scratch. Ok maybe it's not that bad but still. Anyway, I spent some of my time looking through the books but I couldn't settle on one. I started to get sleepy and bid Aldous a good night. I have to be careful when writing all this down. I only have one pen and quill and ink takes time to make. I need to find another way to write eventually. I'll think on it later.

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**I know it starts slow but just bare with me ok?**

**You see that button down there? It feeds the writer a cookie every single time you press it. I like cookies. Cookies are appreciated :3**


	3. Wine vs Face!

9:27 Harvestmere/October 14th

I finally figured out the date! Woo! So it's about 3 weeks since my last entry. Not a lot has happened. I did make a few friends though. Cyla, the one who led me to Oriana's room, and I had been talking for a bit. Then there was Awell and Thellan. They were Nan's assistants and yes they were that squirrely.

"Hey Nan, how goes the kitchens?" I said. I had some time off for once since Oriana and Oren were both spending time with Fergus out in the market. Nan had a mean look about her and many, many wrinkles.

"What do you expect? We're going to get a small party for the lord and many people are going to be coming in. More work and these two all the least bit help." Nan said, mentioning Awell and Thellan. They both shied away from her.

"If you need help that badly, I could always help you out. I used to work in a kitchen."

"Did you? No wonder you know so much around here. Good, the party starts late at night but we must be prepared. The soup is going and the meat is still cooking. The cake needs to be decorated. Thellan! Show her over to the cakes!" Nan shouted.

"Yes Nan!" There was a small spot in the corner where all the baked off cakes were. Thellan showed me a design that Nan wanted to put on the cake. It was pretty simple ribbons and flowers. The icing was kept white throughout.

"So let's get this started shall we?" I said, rolling up my sleeves. I got the stand that twirled and put the cake on top of it.

"Here are the fruit that Nan wants to put in the middle." Thellan said. They were a mish-mash of berries. I put it on and spread it evenly. Thellan had her head low decorating another piece of the cake.

"So Thellan, how did you get to work in the kitchens of Highever Castle?" Thellan looked at me while Nan was running to and fro, checking on all the food for the party.

"Well...my mother is a servant here. She's been working for the Couslands for a very long time. Her loyalty was awarded when they hired me. My mother got sick and can't work anymore though, so I'm the only one here."

"No brothers or sister? What about your dad?" I said, putting the next layer of cake on top.

"My father worked at the docks before he died in an accident out at sea. I have a younger brother that takes care of our mother while I'm working."

"Am I hearing gossip again Thellan?" Nan said, coming up behind us. Thellan became quiet and her head bowed lower.

"Nope Nan, just asking her some questions. We're getting the work done so you shouldn't be complaining right?"

"The only reason why she gets her work done is when she shuts her mouth. Don't encourage her." Nan said, going back to her food. I stuck my tongue at her and Thellan gave me a fearful glance.

"Don't do that!" She harshly whispered.

"Oh there's nothing that Nan can do. You're just letting her get to you. Alright the crumb coat has set for now." Thellan and I worked in silence some more. Nan shouted at Awell for nearly burning some of the soup. I came over to taste it and you couldn't taste the scorch. I finished on the cake just as the banquet was starting. The servants were coming in to get the food to serve to the people. Nan was sitting down helping herself to some of the beer they had. Thellan, Awell, and I went to the servant quarters unless someone needed us.

"I don't see how you could do it Nia. Nan is a demon!" Awell said, taking a good swig of ale.

"Oh trust me I've dealt with her kind for about 3 years back home. I know how it is, keep your head down and just focus on your work. Where I worked, we couldn't even whistle or sing under our breath!" I said.

"Where do you come from? Your accent is very interesting." Thellan said.

"Far away. I accidentally came to Ferelden. Do both of you come from the Alienage here in Highever?"

"I came from the Denerim Alienage to get married. Wife ran away 3 months into it to look for the Dalish." Awell said. I winced at that. "Not many elves appreciate their situation here. The Denerim Alienage is worse off than here. The Cousland's treat us well and give us good pay unlike some in Denerim that barely pays any coppers."

"You're lucky you were born human Nia." Thellan said.

"Just because I'm a human doesn't mean anything...We barely had elves where I was. Humans were everywhere of course, but it was still bad. I lived pay to pay trying to feed two babies and a husband whose jobs barely paid anything. I was happy though. My family was enough to keep me happy."

"You have a point there." Thellan said.

"I barely had enough time to make a family." Awell said. Thellan and I both laughed.

"Anyway, I should get some rest. It's late."

"Stop by when you get some time to yourself." Thellan said. Awell just raised his cup to me.

Those two were nice in comparison with other elves. Other elves, that I won't mention their names, would give me the nastiest stink eye. It was like I ate all their cookies that they were saving from everyone else. I tried not to really talk to those elves but sometimes I would need to for my job. It sucked when I do. Why do they have superiority complexes anyway? The ones I did talk to, Cyla, Awell, and Thellan, would tell me stories from the Alienage. They would tell me of their elven heritage, about the myths of the Dalish elves, the parties, the sense of family. I felt close to them because the sense of family was also in my heritage. The jobs that the elves got here were good. The Cousland's were a good family that took care of them.

Well, most of them.

Eren wasn't a nice guy. He was, sometimes if you were in his book, but he was just a big jerk! He was a bully who didn't really care unless it was his blood family. Servants? He'd step over them. You're not a noble? You're not worth his time. He was all 'Don't step in my shadow, and polish my boots!' It seemed that he has got something against me. Ever since that day that we first met, Eren has just been on me and not the good way either. Whether it be something small like tripping me while I'm carrying laundry, or to try to outright blame me for things I didn't do. I didn't like him.

All I could do is just bow my head, apologize, and imagine my fist hitting his face. Besides that, it was a pretty slow 3 weeks. I did odd jobs for everyone, not just Oriana. Eleanor had me hitting the pastries when I showed Nan how to really work those piping tools. It made Eleanor a big hit with the noble ladies. I was able to make swirls of various kinds, roses, designs, you name it. It was my profession of course. Piping has always come easily to me. She also sent my tips to some blacksmiths to make me some more. I described them to her, hopefully they'll be able to make them. Big iron stuff was easy, making things small and thin needed more work.

Besides doing my work, Fergus and I would take turns trying to teach Oren to speak. So far Un meant Uncle, Papa was of course Fergus and Mum was Oriana. He would also call Eleanor Gram and Bryce Gram. It was funny. Oh right, I finally met Bryce. In the game he looked more softer, oh but don't let that fool you. He looked like a built veteran. He was tall and commanded attention when he stepped into the room. Bryce could easily switch between intimidating and comforting. He also loved Oren to death and dotted on him every single time Bryce was with Oren. Bryce liked how I took care of Oren so he liked me.

Just spending time with the Couslands would make me feel at ease. I found myself laughing, although I tried to hold it in as much as I could. After all I was still a servant. I was also getting paid decently, 15 silvers a week. That is a lot especially for a servant. I ordered another journal made since my small handbook could only fit my first two entries. I did move those entries to the journal though. My pen was still going strong. I always made sure to write at the end of the day. If a lot of time passes without anything interesting happening, well I'd just skip it.

Right now I'm working on a plan and I've made sure to memorize the layout of the castle. Why? Just in case Duncan doesn't come. It's going to be 3 years before the fifth blight. For that I have to make sure Eren survives, even if he is a douche. I also need to save as many people as I can. I went in the larder and saw the passage that everyone was talking about during the quest. It was hidden underneath a couple of big bags of flour. One night, I decided to take a candle and went to the larder. I got the key where Nan kept it.

After opening the lock, I went to where the space where path was. I moved the bags of flour and opened the secret door. After going down the ladder, I started to follow the path. It was held up by cobblestone. It almost looked like the old catacombs underneath the old cities of Europe. After walking for a bit, I found the escape ladder. I went up and opened the wooden door. It was the forest just outside of the castle.

I made sure to take a route which led to a dirt road. Following that road takes me into the outskirts of the city. I noted all of this down in a small diagram. I have to make sure to remember this. After all, the future of the nation could depend on it.

9:27 Harvestmere/October 29

Did I mention Eren was a jerk?

So there was a noble's feast that Bryce was doing in order to celebrate Oren's 3rd birthday. I helped with the desserts before Oriana called me out to help her get dressed for the feast. I was with Oriana, making sure that the purple/pink combination of her clothes looked good on her. I was braiding her hair with a few flowers. It looked extremely beautiful on her. I made sure that the bun holding her hair was tight so it wouldn't come undone. I didn't know how to do over the top hair styles, but simple is in right now. Oriana admired herself in the mirror. She sighed with content.

"You have outdone yourself." Oriana giggled.

"And you will be the shining jewel next to your husband and son." I said, making sure that the fan she was carrying matched her dress. I'm not the one that picked her dress. Heaven forbid! I am bad when it comes to fashion sense. Besides what I look good in. Also shoes, I love shoes! Ok back on track. She thanked me for my comment and grabbed the fan I held.

"Oh but you can't go out like that." Oriana said, a mischievous glint in her eye.

"Huh?" All of a sudden I saw Cyla, her bright red hair and green eyes, a smile on her face. In her arm was a light blue dress. It wasn't over the top. It was simple and a bit poofy.

"O-Oh. My lady, I-I couldn't!" I really couldn't believe she wanted me to dress up.

"Oh stop speaking nonsense! Oren loves you and this party is for him. I won't take no for an answer Nia. You have served me well and deserve a rest. My family loves you Bryce, Eleanor and Fergus. Not as much as myself, you have earned a bit of merriment! Now Cyla, if you please." Oriana said. So Cyla started to make me look pretty. If anyone had mention that I would be in Dragon Age a month ago, I probably would have called them crazy. But here I am, in a corset about to wear a dress that I am sure does not look good on me.

"This is going to suck." I said, as the corset grew tight on me. I'm glad for it, otherwise I would have looked big in that dress.

"Don't worry, the dress will look splendid on you." Cyla said.

"Of course it will. I chose it." Oriana said. After the dress was on, Cyla started to do my hair. She put it up in a high and tight ponytail, making my eyes look more asian like. I only had long bangs to the left side of my face.

"Now for the make up."

"No, I cross the line with make up. I don't wear any." I said.

"You must wear some, my dear." Oriana said.

"Trust me, my lady, I don't wear it at all."

"Well, suit yourself." Cyla gave me soft blue silk gloves to complete the look. Then she pushed me into a full body mirror. I have to admit I looked decent, freckles and all. At least the poof in the shoulders masked my manly shoulders.

"Now you are dressed to impress. Cyla, thank you for your help. Come Nia, the feast await us." Oriana and I walked into the main hall. The long table had plenty of food to dazzle the guests. There was a small band playing very formal music. Nobles gathered around, the poshness oozing from them. I felt very out of place. Everyone congratulated Oriana and I kept to Oriana's side but she kept trying to shoo me away.

"Don't be a mother hen, Nia. I am in my element. Now, go and mingle." Oriana said. At that point I had no choice but to go do as she asked.

This was my first real adult party. I had no idea what I should be doing. Windel, an elf I recognized, came and gave me my first cup of wine. Don't worry, I am 22, I am allowed to drink.

"Thanks Windel. Do you have my gift ready?"

"As soon as I see you go to Lady Oriana's side, it will be ready."

I gave him a polite thank you and goodbye. Many of these people still stuck to their racism. I couldn't be seen being too friendly to the staff. Even though I was part of the staff. I sighed and stuck to the wall for most of the feast, drinking my first cup slowly. I wasn't too much of a wine drinker, especially reds but this one had a sweet hint to it. After an hour, I already wanted to leave. I'd rather be in the study with Aldous than here. So I finished my cup. I smiled. Yes! My first cup gone!

"What are you doing here all alone?" I scowled, my happiness clearly went away. I didn't want to hear that voice. I looked to my side. Eren was there with his neatly trimmed facial hair and a smirk on his lips. He was wearing a dark green formal outfit. It would have looked good on him, if it dumped the poofy shoulders. Really, what's with nobles and poof? Seriously.

"You really want to know? Oriana forced me into this and told me I should 'mingle' whatever that means. I don't know how to act in a party like this. I've never been to one or had experience in one. I don't belong here." I said. I was never one to be at parties. No drinking, no drugs, nothing. I just stayed home, watched my babies, and played video games, with a bit of anime watching and manga reading on the side.

"Of course you don't. You are just a servant. Truthfully, I don't even know why Oriana wasted gold on that dress of yours." He sneered. Oooh. I would love to just punch him in the face. I just smiled. Windel came by again, but his happy face was dashed when he saw Eren. He gave me another cup, his head down as he went out into the crowd. Eren scoffed at him.

"See? That is where you belong. Not wearing things like this, or even enjoying that cup." Eren said. He stood over me, glaring at me. My head barely reached his shoulder. My happy face was gone. "You are a servant, and a servant you will remain."

Ok that did it.

"You know, you're right. I don't belong in a party like this. This wine is way too fine for my tastes. Here, you have it." I poured the contents on his head. It completely drenched Eren's face. He sputtered while others looked at us, but I didn't care. I went to give the empty cup to a passing drink servant and went to look for Oriana. She was having the time of her life, surrounded by her friends and Fergus. Oren was sitting down next to her on the floor and opening some of his presents.

"There you are! I've been looking for you. I must say, you look gorgeous tonight." Fergus said. He took my hand and kissed it. I felt a bit awkward when he did that, but Oriana didn't seem to mind. Fergus was just being polite.

"Thank you and sorry I couldn't come sooner. I was a bit preoccupied. I'm actually here to deliver my gift to Oren." I said. Windel made his grand entrance and gave me what I've been working on. Now keep in mind there is really nothing to do here. It gets boring really easily. I don't want to read history, I'm not being trained in combat, and only occasionally help out with the kitchen staff. So I took a needle and crocheted a blanket. It was light blue with small designs worked into the yarn. I covered Oren with it and he laughed.

"Mia!" He said, stretching out his hands.

"Oh Oren, she can't carry you right now." Oriana laughed. Fergus got him instead. Oren really loved his dad.

"Oriana, I'm not feeling very well. I think the party is starting to get to me. Can I be excused for the night?"

"You do look a bit exhausted, Nia. Go on." Oriana said. "After all, I don't need servant to help me undress when I have a dutiful husband." She winked at me. Fergus, being a good father to Oren, didn't notice it. Antivan women are like this apparently. I thanked Oriana and made my way out of the hall. I passed by Eren as I was leaving. He was fuming and gave me the nastiest stink glare ever. I didn't care. I gave him a little greeting with my middle finger and hightailed it out of there.

I got to my room in a huff and undressed myself, taking off all the nice things that Cyla put on me. No silk gloves, no blue silk dress, and no freaking corset. I let my hair down and I felt like myself again. I took out my journal and wrote all this down in rage. I would strangle Eren if I had the chance, the stupid prick. Sadly, destiny said that he has to live.

Phooey.

9:27 Firstfall/November 1st

So it snowed! I was so excited. I ran around like a maniac, scaring a few guards before I got that energy out of my system. Also the city was getting ready for Satinalia. It's a festival, think Mardi Gras with some Christmas thrown in. At least here. Oriana told me tales of a week long party filled with debauchery and chaos back in Antiva. It was her favorite time of the year. Here in Ferelden, people would go into the Chantry and the Mother would recite a few passages. After that, feast time! Then the giving of presents.

I'm actually really excited about it. Not too much about the mass. I will say this; I am a Catholic. I believe in God, Jesus and the Spirit. I also believe in the Virgin Mary and all the saints and angels. That's who I am. I pray every morning and night and right before I eat. I'm not a bible thumper. I like to think of myself as a very open minded Catholic. I believe in a lot of things that, technically, I'm not supposed to believe in, but I still do. I'm accepting of all religions no matter what. The festival did unnerve me with the whole mass thing.

I didn't know any of the things required for the mass.

And apparently I didn't have to.

"So the servants celebrate separately? That makes so much more sense." I said, making the little tails on Oriana's hair. She cut it short. It's a lot more manageable but the little ponytail, or braids, did need time. She had a lot of hair to take care of since it was so full.

"Yes. My family will celebrate in the main hall. Nan takes care of the servants living here. We also send the elves to celebrate with their families with what they believe in." Oriana described. She sighed wistfully.

"You thinking of Antiva aren't you?" I asked with a smirk. She had a mischievous glint in her eyes. Oriana is a fun person when you get to know her. Oriana liked to have fun with some of the servants but you still had to keep an eye on how you treat her. No matter how easy going she seemed to be, Oriana was still a noble woman.

I helped Oriana put on a dress that looked more conservative than usual. It was mostly white, some embroidering along the sleeves and bottom along with a red shawl. It was time for the mass to start. This one was optional to join. I had already told Oriana ahead of time that I wasn't going to go. She respected my decision. She went ahead, led by Fergus, Oren on his shoulders. Fergus gave me a small wave while I went to the servant's quarters.

I let out a breath. It was cold. I could see how I'm exhaling through my nose. It felt good. Living in a desert you are always hit with extremes, hot or cold, love it or hate it. I loved winter time. The crisp cold air and the way it bites at your skin as you walk, but it felt so fresh. As I made my way toward the kitchens, I heard Nan shout with glee with a few of the human servants. I went into the kitchen and was greeted with half drunk people.

Most of them I already recognized and a few that I knew the names of. A few men tried putting their arm around me, but I side stepped them and went over to where Nan was.

"Evening." I said.

"Aren't you supposed to be at the Chantry? I wouldn't have pegged you to be here." Nan said. She took a long swig from an open bottle.

"Yeah. I don't do well at parties." The rumors of how I dumped a decent amount of wine on Eren spread through the castle like wildfire. I suddenly became the hero to some of them. Most servants didn't like Eren for how he treated them. The fact that I did something to humiliate him, made them like me more. "I just came here to get some food. Don't worry, I'll make sure that I bring back the plate." Nan motioned where they were. They already set up the feast in the main hall. When mass ended, people could have the food prepared right in front of them.

I took some of the food that didn't pass the eye level. That meant that it was the food that didn't look perfect enough to set up. It was enough for me for a good dinner. I thanked Nan, grabbed a bottle of wine discreetly, and went to my room.

As soon as I closed my door to my room, I sighed. All the festive air made me think of home. It's been a while since I've thought about my family.

I tried not to think about them, but I do worry. I was the bread winner in my family. I wonder how my husband is faring with both of the fat babies. Ace, Alice...I miss you. Mami loves you.

I said my prayer and started to eat. I did feel a little lonely. Ok maybe more than a little, but what choice did I have? I couldn't explain my situation to anyone. No one would believe me. I couldn't go up to a person and say 'Hey, I'm from another world, care to listen to my story?.' So I ate alone. I emptied the entire bottle that night.

* * *

**I'm not too much of a big drinker but I do like wine. White wine preferably.**

**Shout out to ElyssaCousland, DaughterofLoki1111, and bergamot29 for following/favoriting this story! :D**

**A review is just a click away. It gives me eats, it gives me sleeps. ^_^**

**(Also! Those who are confused about first reading the rewrite and then this, due to the fact that there are people that are still reading the original, I'm uploading the rewrite under the name DAYS OF OUR START and that will be THE REWRITE. Sorry for the confusion everyone!)**


	4. Boredom

9:27 Firstfall/November 9th

Well it's early morning. The sun hasn't come out yet. I had an odd dream last night and one that I needed to write down as soon as possible. One that I haven't had since I first came here to Ferelden.

I woke up in the fade. It was easy to piece together what I went through to get to Ferelden was the fade. The first time I was there I couldn't believe I didn't put together the pieces. The ever changing colors? Floating islands and green sky? Blurriness and realness that seems fake? Totally the Fade but I was just in an almost fatal car crash, so of course I didn't figure it out.

It was here that my vision was blurry for some odd reason. It looked like the desert on the outskirts of the city I used to live in. I remembered that the fade usually presented itself as places you've visited. I would be passing this scenery in the car on the way to visit my family in the next state. There were tons of natural plants, bushes, and a few small trees. There were mountains in the distance that I could see if I squinted. Curse my short sightedness. In the sky were floating islands that were common place in the fade. There was the weird sun that didn't give any warmth and the odd green sky. I stared out in front of me, blinked a few times, looked around some more, then looked down. I was standing on a dirt path. I sighed, not really seeing anything else to do, and started to walk. I kept walking but the scenery didn't change. I realized I was walking parallel to a paved road. I decided to take that instead. Everything seemed so off.

There were no animals. There were no bugs, no chittering of birds, no coyotes or snakes. This place was devoid of all life. Where were the spirits at least? Wasn't the fade their home? Good spirits don't usually get involved with humans anyway. I shudder to think if a demon found me, ugh. Suddenly I felt that odd presence from the first time. I was being watched. I looked around. There weren't a lot of things to hide behind here. I knew I was just seeing it somewhere, then there it was. I would say about 5 meters away from me. The spirit looked like a halo just like the first time. A good spirit I guess? Bad demons don't look like halos.

I tilted my head at it, confused, and, for some odd reason, I felt it doing the same thing.

"Hi." I said, and waved. I felt it recoil a bit and look around even though it didn't have a face to look around with. It was wondering. It was curious. I don't know how I was able to feel these things from it, but I didn't ask any question about it either. I just knew. "Nice day for a walk huh?" Yeah, that didn't sound awkward at all. I felt it look at me. We stared at each before I began to get antsy again. There was nothing to be done staring at each other all day, or night? So I continued to walk. Every so often, I would look to my right and there it was floating along with me. Then out of nowhere it appeared in front me. From the way it was feeling, it said not to go any further.

"Why not?"

Danger.

The fade was a dangerous place to be in for a mage. Spirits made the fade their home and also demons. Demons would try to tempt a mage into giving up their bodies to experience the real world. I know that demons can even affect normal people by making them Reavers to be able to use demonic energy outside of the fade. Mage or not, if the spirit was telling me there was danger ahead, I listened. I nodded in confirmation and it made a sigh of relief.

Then I opened my eyes. I was awake. I usually have vivid dreams but I could never remember what they were about when I woke up. It was usually something stupid like trying to find a matching set of shoes.

This was different. I was in the Fade and remembered. The ones that travel the fade while they sleep are supposed to be mages. Me a mage? It would be pretty cool but I had to check first. I looked toward my candle as I wrote and tried to command it. All it did was just flicker like it usually did. Nope, not a mage.

Well I'd better get back to sleep. Signing off.

9:27 Firstfall/November 10th

Today would have been my son's second birthday. I fidgeted with my gold ring all day, twirling it on my finger. I remembered his dimply face, his asian looking eyes, big smile, his gree-ing laugh. Although I'm Mexican, I have almond shaped eyes. I passed it on to him. He looked so much more like me than his father.

I missed them so much. The loneliness crept up slowly. A week away was ok, the loneliness was kept at bay. Two weeks and I started to think about it more. Now it's been 2 months since I've been here. I'm missing them dearly. My son, my daughter, my family. I miss my mom's pozole. I miss my brother and my dad. I miss my husband.

My poor husband. I wonder if time passed by? Did the days go by like they did here? Was I missing for two months over there? How was he handling my disappearance, or even my death? I had so many questions and no answers. I kept sighing all day just missing them. Oriana noticed. I wasn't even playing with Oren as much. I looked at him and I saw my son. It made my heart wrench.

Being a mother was hard. Being a mother without her children was harder.

And all this worrying was causing me to have another migraine.

"Are you ok Nia? You look pale." Oriana asked. Oren was in her lap, a sweet roll in his mouth.

"My head is hurting again. It's like someone is forcing a needle in the center of my forehead. Then they're trying to push out my eyeballs." I explained. I hated migraines. They only come when I worry or when I'm stressed. I was both. All this thinking about my family is making me think about questions. Questions mean stress. Stress is bad.

"Our resident healer is away at the moment. Go visit Aldous. He should have some elfroot potions." Oriana suggested. My mouth turned into a grimace. Honey and grass smoothie? Don't mind if I do. Unfortunately, that was the only thing that would make this migraine go away.

Oriana helped me up to the door. I told her not to worry too much and made her stay to go through her letters. I walked toward the study or tried to. The migraine was starting to become worse. The bright snow was not making anything better either. The light was felt like it was stabbing my eyes. I memorized the layout on the castle and I go down the last corridor where I knew Aldous' study would be. I grabbed at the walls. I felt wobbly and dizzy. My legs weren't listening to me anymore. The pressure was becoming immensely painful. All I wanted to do was hug the wall or curl up in a fetal position. It would suck to pass out right now. That would be no bueno.

I bumped into someone and they held me by my shoulders. I tried to blink away the pressure to get a good look at the person.

"Excuse me, are you alright?" I heard that voice before. Lo and behold, Ser Gilmore the red head. It still freaked me out that he barely had any eyebrows but, right now, I'm glad that he was there.

"Ser Gilmore..." I managed to say before swaying slightly. He kept me up right with his hands. "I'm not feeling too good." Understatement of the year.

"Is there...oh! You are heading towards Aldous? Here, lean on me." I did as he said. He led me slowly while I just closed my eyes. I hated this. I hated feeling useless. Finally, after what I felt was an eternity, we reached Aldous' study. The fireplace at the end burning bright. I heard Aldous' muffled voice but at this point just even hearing anything caused me great discomfort. I just held my head in my hands trying to focus on something other than the pain. I felt someone take my hand and put a vial into it. I recognized the smell. Well, bottom's up. I drank the whole vial. I coughed, the taste was disgusting. I will never get used to that.

"There. Feeling better?" Aldous said. I nodded. The pain in my head started to feel numb and I was able to see again. Ser Gilmore was still there right behind Aldous. I rubbed my head a little bit until the pain faded. I have some concerns about the taste but nothing beats an elfroot potion.

"Thank you Aldous and thank you Ser Gilmore." I said, bowing in my chair.

"Please, there's no need to thank me. I wanted to help you." He said sincerely. Ah if there were only more men like him out there. The world would be a better place.

"Gilmore!" And of course the happy moment has ended. In came Eren using his walk/strut. "There you are! Come now, the market place awaits!" He slapped him on the shoulder. Gilmore stood there, not moving. Comparing both of them, Gilmore was the meatier of both of them.

"Of course my lord. I hope for your recovery." Gilmore bowed to me. Eren gave me a glare and, as he walked out, I stuck my tongue out. Aldous just laughed at me.

9:27 Haring/December 13th

I've had more dreams about Halo. Yes it looks like a halo so I've dubbed it Halo. The scenery changed every single time I'm there. Well more like it cycled through. Sometimes it was the mountains and desert, the beach, a forest with a lake or just a regular forest. Sometimes there was snow. Other times, there wasn't. The creepiest setting was, sometimes, I was in my old city or where my old house was. All buildings and no life anywhere besides me and Halo. I'd rather have the forest or lake.

I did notice a running theme no matter where I was in the fade. There was always a path and I always walked. There was nothing else to do. I also found out how to get a weapon to come into being. It was weird how I did it the first time. I got startled and, for some odd reason, remembered the wooden sword that my husband gave to me to work out with. I imagined swinging it where I first heard the noise and it came in my hands. Now I walk with a set of brass knuckles. They were illegal where I used to live. It didn't stop me from putting my keys in between my knuckles just in case. That was the downside of having to go to work at 3 in the morning.

Halo was usually off to the side of me. It was always a couple of meters away from me but the more I dreamt of it, the closer it came to me. Soon it was nearly beside me. I could feel some sort of apprehension from it and familiarity. It knew me somehow. I didn't question it. I vented to it most of the time.

Being employed by the Couslands was a sweet deal. I had my own private room. I could eat good food. I had a bathroom! But I was just so bored! I was one to sit on my butt when I came home and just opened my laptop to whatever was there. I could occupy myself for hours on something but even then I got bored of the internet. How does one get bored of the internet? Not that easy, needless to say, I got bored here really quick. Being Oriana's handmaiden kept me occupied for most of the time. Then there are days when I had too much time for myself. Oriana thought she was being a good boss for giving me some time to myself, but I liked to work. Instead I would go into the kitchens to help Nan or even do laundry. If didn't want to do that, then I would crochet or practice some drawing.

Of course then I would go to sleep and then I would dream of the fade. Sometimes, as I walked through the fade, Halo would stop right in front of me. It would always say Danger. I had a feeling that we're not the only ones traveling this path. So far I've had Halo with me to protect me. I don't know how long that will last though.

-/-

The rest of the day was spent with me in my thoughts. Today was my brother's and my daughter's birthday. Oh and I'm now 23 from last month. I forgot about that. I never thought that would happen to me. I always liked my birthday but this time it just reminded me of how long I've been away from home.

I was sighing all day, messing with my ring again. It was on this day that Oriana asked me about it.

"I have a question Nia. Are you married?" Oriana asked. She and I were crocheting together a shawl.

"Yes I am." I said. I made sure that my knots were pretty and continued.

"You don't really talk much about your family." Oriana said.

"I try not to. Truthfully, I don't know if I'll ever go back home. Not that this isn't my home mind you. It's just not the same. Actually, today is my daughter's and my brother's name-days." Yes that is how they say birthdays here.

"Is that so?" Oriana wondered.

"Yeah. My brother would have been 25 and my daughter would have completed her first year." I said. Ah yes my fat turkey. Don't look at me like that, everyone has weird nicknames that their parents put on them. Oriana gave me this long sad look.

"...You miss them." Oriana said softly.

"More than they'll ever know..."

The rest of the day I had a neutral face on. I cried my eyes out later that night.

9:28 Wintermarch/January 1st

Happy new year! Thank God I was able to survive. Today is all about merriment and drinking. More emphasis on the drinking for some. Nothing much to report other than I'm going to get tipsy and just call it a night.

Oh and Oren is finally speaking in sentences! Woo!

9:28 Guardian/February 1st

Another month has gone by. It's amazing how time flies when you're working. Oren was starting to pick up his lessons quickly now. I think his brain put two and two together. He still has trouble pronouncing things. He sounds so innocent and cute.

Also today is another holiday called Wintersend. It's almost like Easter and it's a Chantry holiday. It's also when there's a gigantic tourney. I've seen the stadium as I walked with Oriana through the city a couple of times. Fergus and Eren are both going to be a part of it. Bryce will oversee it. It's a big hit with everyone. It also allowed Bryce to pick out suitable men for the army.

"Do the participants get really hurt?" I asked Oriana. We were in a wagon heading toward the stadium. It had snowed heavily the last few days but today was clear. We needed to walk a part of the way there.

"There are rules during the tourney and we have healers on standby." I mentally cringed. It was hard to even watch professional fighters on the T.V. This would be the real thing right in front of me. The wagon dropped us off near the gates.

"Oh this accursed snow. I would have loved to wear the shoes I bought from the merchant from Orlais."

"If you want your feet to turn black, it's your choice my lady." Oriana looked at me and huffed. I chuckled a little bit.

We entered the stadium. It's modestly sized. Nothing like the great ones we made for football or baseball. I would guesstimate that you could probably seat around 10 thousand people. Enough for the half of the city anyway. Oriana and I went into the booths that were closer to the fighting. Bryce and Eleanor already in their seats. Oren was being taken care of by Nan back at the castle. The stadium was packed full of people, humans and elves. Elves weren't allowed to enter, but they could watch.

Bryce went ahead and made his announcements for a good tourney. The Revered Mother said a few things from the Chant of Light to complete it. Finally the tourney started.

The tourney consisted of all one on one matches. Fight until the opposing side can't fight anymore, yields, or is knocked unconscious. You can't kill your opponent. When you win your fight, you continue onto the next round until the finals. There was no reward besides a small reward of gold and the bragging rights.

The fighting was a marvelous thing to see and a little painful actually. I'm an empathetic person. I saw these guys hitting each other with their swords and maces and I cringed in my seat. Fergus and Eren are both doing well. Even Ser Gilmore was there! They were all doing very well. All of them favored the sword and shield. Fergus would look over to Oriana whenever he started a fight. Eren had some fangirls that he waved to.

The battles never lasted more than about 5 minutes. There was no time limit, the guys that were fighting were just that good. At last we're at the semi finals. Ser Gilmore against Eren. Oh this will be good.

Ser Gilmore and Eren greeted each other before going to their starting points. Bryce announced them to fight. They started to circle one another. I was on the edge of my seat. Eren made the first move.

He moved like a bulwark with his shield which met Ser Gilmore's shield. Ser Gilmore was bulkier than him, but was almost overwhelmed by Eren's momentum. Eren started to stab but Gilmore used his shield to push him away. Again, the circling. Gilmore attacked with a few precise slashes which Eren mostly caught with his shield. A slash did connect on his arm. That was going to leave a bruise. They kept trying to overpower each other with their own shield. They were making use of their defense as an offense.

Eren's shield was smaller than Gilmore's, which allowed him to maneuver around Gilmore. Eren caught the back of Gilmore's knee with his sword, which made Gilmore's leg to give out. Gilmore tried to roll, but with that bulky armor, he wasn't having an easy time. Eren's knee came down on Gilmore's chest and his sword right on his throat.

"I-I yield!" Ser Gilmore shouted. People started to dance upon the stands and I pouted. Eren was waving his hands like a maniac. His fangirls were going crazy. Eren looked over to where we were and our eyes connected. He gave me a smug smirk.

Oh how I would love to punch his teeth out.

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	5. Holy Training Bruises Batman!

9:28 Drakonis/March 15th

I had to write this down before I forget it. It's either late at night or early morning. I made some headway with Halo. I was going through the usual path, this time going down a steep path in a forest. Halo was right beside me. Of course there was still no ambiance at all. Besides something not pleasant trailing after me. I didn't know what it was, but I was sure it was a demon. Why would a demon even follow me even though I'm not a mage, is beyond me. Maybe it just looks at me and thinks I'm an easy pathway? I'm not sure. I didn't think about it a lot. I'm digressing again.

I followed the path all the way down to an empty cabin. There were rocks and I soon saw the reflective surface of the water. It was a lake I visited a long time ago. I reached the bank and looked out to the horizon. I couldn't see too far because of my sight. There was a floating island in the distance and a boat that was upside down. The lake made no ripples. It was eerily still. I sighed. There was really nowhere to go around here. The path ended and I didn't want to go up the hill. I looked at Halo next to me. I've tried getting closer to Halo but every single time I tried, it would recoil and go farther away from me. It didn't stop me from trying. I gingerly held out my hand. Halo recoiled. I felt a bit sad that it was my companion during my walks through the fade but it seemed afraid of me. Halo protected me and all I wanted to do was just to be its friend. I sighed to myself and left my hand out and looked out into the lake. Then a warmth settled in my hand.

Halo was resting in my palm. It was usually the size of a basketball but it shrank to fit. I looked at it through my peripheral vision and smiled. It felt warm and I felt loved. I felt protected. Halo felt like home.

-/-

My life has settled into a routine. I usually got up with all the others in the servant quarters. I dressed up and went to warm up Orianna's bath. By this time Fergus has already left to do whatever duties, heh, that his father gave him. Bryce mostly gave Fergus assignments to deal with that he couldn't get to himself. Then I helped Oriana get dressed, do a few noble woman things, and end my day either at the study or having fun with rest of the elves. They really helped me pass by the time.

Oren also played with me a lot now that he realized that speaking got him stuff. Oren's a nonstop chatterbox. He pointed to everything and said its name. Oren told me of the things he imagined while he played by himself. Fergus bought him a few wooden blocks. I managed to convince him to get some letters on them. Soon I was teaching Oren how to spell.

Of course all of this was great and dandy. Then there was Eren. He always had a stick up his butt whenever he looked at me. I just put my innocent smile while I stuck my tongue out at him when he wasn't looking. It was monotonous, but it was comfortable.

Whenever I got the time, I always reviewed the way out of the castle. I had to keep my mind sharp when they day came. I couldn't rely on Duncan coming on that day to rescue Eren. I needed to be prepared for the worst. I already memorized the way out through the servant's exit and the best way to get out of the city. Hopefully this will all be enough to do some good.

9:28 BloomingTide/May 24

Summerday came and went. There wasn't really need for celebration besides a few of the elven servants and their children. Fergus and Eren have already come of age a while ago.

Speaking of Eren...well the day didn't go as I thought it would. Honestly, I thought I was going to be Oriana's handmaiden until the attack. Life decided that it wasn't going to be that way.

I was doing my duties, heh, with Oriana. She was talking to a few friends of hers; Lucia and Lacie outside in the courtyard on one of their tables. The day was balmy, slightly humid, with a light wind. Lucia and Lacie were noble twins stopping by to greet her. I was giving them tea and a few sweets. They were talking their normal gossip here and there. After I made sure they were good with their food, I would go sit back down and work on some embroidering that Oriana was teaching me. That's how the day was supposed to go, calm, quiet, nice. Then Eleanor crashed the party. Eleanor didn't necessarily slam the door to get to us, but she might as well have. Eleanor's face was tight and a fury behind her eyes. I won't lie, I was intimidated by her. Eleanor was still a really good shot with a bow and arrow. She even gave tips to the guards. She came toward us and greeted everyone, then her eyes landed on me.

"Nia? May I have a word with you?" Instantly I thought, 'Oh crap. I did something wrong didn't I?' Well, time to type up the old resume. I excused myself from Oriana and her guests. Eleanor motioned for me to follow her. I had to almost jog to keep up with her. Curse my shortness. Eleanor was walking with a vengeance. We weaved through the castle and came into the main hall. Eren was there and he was not happy from the look of the scowl on his face.

"Nia, from now on you will shift your duties to Eren." Eleanor said simply.

Ha ha, so funny! Wait what?

"You do not need to saddle me with her! Ser Gilmore is-" Eleanor just gave him a cold look of disappointment and Eren huffed and crossed his arms.

"Ser Gilmore will always follow your command, no matter what. I know that you have been abusing that. I'm sure that Nia will make sure to keep you in line. No matter what he says, you will stop him from his frivolous acts. Won't you?" Eleanor said. She had a creepy smile on that said 'You better do your job.' I gulped.

"Yes my lady." I bowed.

"Good. I will go and inform Oriana. She won't like this one bit..." Eleanor said as she walked out. Eren sighed and huffed. I put on my innocent face. Smile, it makes people wonder what's going on in your head.

"Look, you can drop the act. You don't like me and I don't like you. I don't care what my mother said. You will listen to whatever I say and I will do whatever I will like. You can't stop me." Eren said coming up to me, trying to look intimidating, poking my forehead. Well he did say to drop the act so I let him have it.

"Alright, listen you snot nosed brat, you may think you have the power around here, but you're dead wrong. For one, I was employed by Oriana and I only listen to those I respect. You wanna know a secret? I don't respect you and I hate your guts. All you are is a playboy, riding on your parent's fortune. You don't do anything important, you waste other peoples time, and you barely help. Now I follow your mother. No matter what you say or do, you won't be able to get rid of me that easy." I said, finally poking his chest. Eren's face was turning red with anger and it almost made me laugh.

"You will regret saying that." He said, and walked out. Of course I followed him. This is now my job.

Yay me.

9:28 Solace/July 4th

Oh my Jesus, I am exhausted. So from the last time I wrote, Eleanor had made me into Eren's handmaiden because he can't look after himself. It wasn't too bad at first. Eren tried to put me through a lot of shit. From doing his all of his laundry (which he would try to get dirty again as soon as possible) then shining his armor and boots. If he wasn't happy with the shining, then he would purposely drag them in mud and have me polish them again. Jerk. Then every single time Eren tore his clothes, I had to repair it. Eren would do it on purpose many a time. Of course I faced everything with a sweet smile while Eren fumed. He didn't think he was getting under my skin but I really wanted to punch him in his face.

Then he decided to do something that made me scared. He decided to train me.

Yeah, that's right. Gone are my apron and servant clothes. I now wore armor and he was abusing/training me.

"You want me to what?" I asked. By this time 2 months have gone and passed. Eren did his best to get me to leave him be but Eren soon learned I was going nowhere. I was watching Eren fight with one of the guards. He always chose one out of random to train with to make sure they're up to par. The weird thing was that the guards like Eren. Eren was shirtless and only wearing the leg guards. He and the guard were sweating buckets. It was hot, for them at least. I can handle more heat than him.

"I want you to learn how to fight. We can't have a repeat about what happened in the tavern. I know you just love doing my laundry, but I go out into the city to make sure that no trouble comes to the people. I need someone that I can depend on, not a cowardly servant. Unfortunately, I'm stuck with you. So, to make light of a bad situation, I have decided to train you. I've already had your armor fitted." He said, grabbing a box. I was wondering that was. He laid it in front of me. It was a simple chainmail set. I just grabbed one of the gloves and realized that this probably weighed about 6 kg. If one glove weighed that much, I'm scared to find out how all of it was.

"You will start wearing this instead of your servant clothes. You will come to the training ground in the morning to train. Considering that you don't do heavy work, I doubt that you could even carry a longsword. For now we will work with daggers. We will go to the blacksmith and fashion you a few that you feel comfortable using." He explained, grabbing a cloth and wiping the sweat. I felt a bit dizzy. I mean, I knew that I have to fight eventually. Still, this was all so new to me.

I'm not a housewife but I knew how to do a little bit of everything. Thanks to Oriana, I know a lot of noble things. Fighting I had no experience of whatsoever. Eren went and grabbed his armor after his practice fight with the guard. He got some money and we went out into the city. Everyone had a sheen of sweat to them. The marketplace in Highever was about two times the size of the Denerim one. They also have separate districts for everything. We go to the weapon and armor district. It smelled of burning coal, ash, and sweat. We go into one of the stores and the blacksmith was bald but with a bushy beard.

"'Ello my lord. Anything I can get ya?" He asked, the pounding of hammers ringing in the background.

"Yes. I would like a pair of daggers made for this woman." Eren said, slapping my back. I stumbled a bit. The blacksmith looked at me up and down.

"A little flimsy, aint's she?" He said after scanning me. Well sorry for only doing housework for the past half year!

"Can I suggest on the design?" I said. Eren looked at me with a raised eyebrow.

"You have an idea? Well, that's a first." Eren chuckled. I kicked his shin and got a grunt of pain. It hurt my toes, but it was worth it. I asked for a blank vellum. I drew what I thought would be the best weapon for me. I didn't trust myself with a regular dagger. I almost cut a piece of my finger off several times with regular chef knives. Instead I drew a knuckle dagger. It's brass knuckles and dagger combo. I'm always putting my keys in between my knuckles and using knuckles in the fade. I might as well make it more deadly. I did make the blade a little bit more longer. With a weapon like this, grip will come easy so I would accidentally stab myself.

"An odd idea, but interestin'. So how will ya pay?" Eren went ahead and started to haggle. I was nervous. Hopefully I don't injure myself too badly.

-/-

The first day of wearing my armor was numbing to say the least. The armor weighed so heavy. I could barely walk in it. How the hell do you run in this? Eren got a good chuckle from my misery. I kicked him in the shin, or at least tried to. I kept on stumbling by the sheer weight and there were many times when my balance was thrown off. This was just medium armor! I shudder at the though of plate armor.

While my weapon was being made, Eren had me practice with very heavy wooden swords. He didn't fight me one on one. He got a recruit.

I failed. Badly. Probably the worst ever. I couldn't even swing the damn things.

"Put your back into it Nia! You won't get better if you don't try!" Eren shouted. We were in the training grounds of the guards. We had a slight audience. Most chuckled as I tried my hardest to lift and swing. I could barely carry one sword with both of my hands. My muscles were screaming as the recruit kept on showing off by jumping and running around me will full armor. The closer I got to him, the more the recruit just sidestepped. I groaned in pain, my arms telling me to stop. Eren just kept on egging me on trying to get me to fight. Once the recruit tripped me, I could barely get up. Eren was laughing up a storm but I could tell this was a serious issue for him.

"Again!" Eren said, his chuckles subsiding. I tried to get up to no avail. The guards were laughing at me as the recruit helped me up. I pulled the recruit down and kicked him in the ribs. It caused everyone to laugh harder.

The more I worked for Eren, the more I figured out his personality. Eren has a slight white knight complex. He liked being the hero and helping everyone, that he thinks needs his help. Eren mostly helped out woman and, usually, would seduce them. Eren was really racist towards elves for some odd reason. I say it's odd, because his family isn't really like that. When I asked for a reason, Eren just brushed me off and told me to bugger off. Surprisingly enough, Eren has a sweet tooth. Eren also doesn't like drinking as much as I thought. Eren would never fight drunk even though he knew of a few that did, and did it well. So Eren has some self control.

Eren has only one weakness, he was a womanizer. Big time. Eren was always flirting and showing off his stuff whenever we went into the city to do his rounds. Eren is a bit picky about who he takes to bed though. Eren likes them tall with dark hair with a slight mean streak.

After my first failure of a practice session, Eren called off my training for the day. I went back into my room and I took a bath. I had numerous bruises on me. Some where from the training session when I fell. Others were from the uniform itself. It didn't chafe but it rubbed enough to make some sore spots. I was so tired. It's the reason I haven't been writing as often. Once my training sessions end, I'm out cold. This is the second week and I still can barely lift anything. Everything is sore. Eren saw how hopeless I was after two weeks with the practice swords. Instead Eren is going to teach me to roll.

A good roll like Link. Hopefully I don't break my neck.

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	6. Changed forever

9:28 Solace/July 6th

Please just kill me now. Stupid Eren, Jerk! Why do you have to run me so hard?! Anyway...Wow, it's been so long! The training usually leaves me out cold and then I only get woken up by something bright. Usually the sun.

Trudging around something that's probably 30 kg or more is hard work. Then there were the swords. Eren has been working me to the bone on training. Every single time that I passed someone that I recognized, they gave me the most sympathetic look. When his parents found out, they gave Eren a pat on the back! Eleanor did reassign me to him just to make sure Eren didn't get out of line. Now that I'm being trained to fight, I could also defend him AND keep him in line. Win-win for everyone besides me. Though I shouldn't complain too much. This should help me for the future.

Eren made me exercise in the armor. I have to wear it everywhere. He had me running, jogging, anything to make sure I get used to the weight. There were times that Eren woke me up early morning just for training. After the exercises, I've been practicing my rolling. So far I've almost had a broken neck, bruises everywhere, and cuts. So many cuts. I couldn't drink potion after potion so I had to live with those cuts and bruises. My whole body is a bruise, it hurts so much. I have been improving at the same time which is the good thing. I can somewhat jog with the armor on, more or less.

Eren had been keeping a close eye on my training. He made sure to keep an eye on me all the time. If it looked like I'm slacking off, Eren grabbed the wooden sword and wacked me with it. That thing hurt! I did everything without complaining to him. I complained to Halo in the fade, but I made sure Eren never saw me. He will not break me! Eren has been uncharacteristically serious about all of this as well. If it's about fighting, he's all serious. It's a welcome change. I wished he didn't wack me so many times though.

"Remember that a roll could easily save your life. Now, do it again." Eren said, walking around with the wooden sword tapping his shoulder. I was panting out of exhaustion. We probably have practiced this for a few hours already. The armor was always getting in the way.

"Why...can't I...just get...leather...armor?" I panted, my hands on my knees trying to catch my breath. Eren scoffed and rolled his eyes.

"Medium armor is always best. It's flexible but strong enough to withstand hits. Leather armor might give you an advantage to movement but, in a long fight, medium armor is best. Not even someone as experienced as me can kill someone in a short amount of time. Now, again!" Eren shouted. He was like an army lieutenant. I groaned. The guards watched me with sympathy. I had made a small path on the ground already due to practicing so many times. I stood up. My muscles ached terribly and the armor was pinching the bruises I developed from all my failed times. This wasn't like my old job. At least there I only got to carry around 20 kg of product here and there just for a little bit. I didn't have to lug it around all day.

I stood at my starting point. The sun beating down on my neck, sweat dripping from my chin but I was set to do this. I took in a breath and let it out. I started to jog. I launched myself, using my hands to guide me. This time I didn't feel any pain. The world spun and I found myself standing up, my balance shaky but I did it. The guards didn't look too impressed but I probably made the biggest smile of my life. Fist pump yeah! I couldn't celebrate too early. I looked toward Eren. He didn't have that normal evil smile and started to clap.

"Yeah!" I giggled like a maniac and jumped up and down. Oh I felt pumped!

"Well, now that you have successfully done a roll, we can move on to fighting." Eren said. He gave me one of his evil smirks. Never mind, Eren is the devil. I groaned and nearly fell on the floor. At least all of this training made for some super sleep.

After the roll, came the exercises with the swords. I held them the way I would hold my knuckle daggers, blade away from me. Eren didn't put me with any sparring partner for the time being. He had me beat training posts the way a few guards did. Eren made me go through maneuvers and had me practice them until they became muscle memory. During my training, Eren would randomly try to attack me. At first it took me by surprise but that just made me more aware of what he was doing. Eren carried the wooden sword everywhere with me and I would have to dodge it the most I can. I could tell that Eren was also liking training with me. His mischief toned down considerably since I became his pet project.

I would accompany him on his rounds into the city. The Highever guards were more organized than Denerim but Eren still liked to help them. They, in turn, looked up to him.

"Do you think there's going to be any troublemakers today?" I asked, trying to keep up with his pace. He wore his armor with his sword and shield, I was right behind him with a wooden sword.

"I don't believe so. Highever is a very safe city. That doesn't mean to say the alleyways are safe. Keep your guard up and you won't die."

"Oh wow Eren you care for me so much." I said sarcastically. Eren shoved me and I laughed. We were in the back streets of the city. Most of the trouble happens away from the watchful eyes of the guards. Unlike Denerim, however, they actually patrol this part of the city. We saw a few suspicious characters but Eren walked like he owned the place. He nodded to a few of them while they glared back. I didn't feel safe. It was only Eren and I. I still didn't know how to properly fight so if we got into trouble, we're shit out of luck.

"What are you doing here blue blood?" A burly man said. He had a scar running down one of his eyes. Eren just crossed his arms in defiance.

"I'm taking a walk." The burly man laughed as I noticed that more men started to circle us.

"No one just takes a walk in my neighborhood blue blood."

"Uh Eren..."

"This is my city. I can go anywhere I please." The burly man glared at Eren, the men around us starting to put their hands on the handles of their weapons.

"Is that so?"

"Andraste's sword! A distraction!" I shouted and pointed. It worked and I grabbed Eren to get the hell out of there. The men didn't notice for a good minute which gave us a good running start.

"Let me go Nia!"

"Shut up Eren and keep running!" I weaved through the alleyways, trying to make sure where I was going would lead us to a very populated place. I didn't even look back. I was a novice at fighting and I wasn't going to let Eren get me into a fight I wasn't ready for. Finally I heard the regular shouting of shopkeepers and we ended up in the tailor district of the marketplace. I was still holding onto Eren and he took back his arm.

"What is wrong with you?" I hit him with my practice sword.

"What's wrong with me? You nearly fought those guys for absolutely no reason!"

"I could have taken all of them." Eren said, crossing his arms.

"Don't be stupid Eren, they outnumbered us and, in case you forgot, I still don't know how to fight!"

"I'm much stronger than I look."

"Don't flatter yourself Eren. My job is to look after you. I just did my job and made sure you weren't hurt." Eren scoffed and I hit him again.

"Stop hitting me!"

"Not until you tell me you were wrong." Eren glared down at me and I glared back at him.

"Hey get a room!" A teenager yelled. We both looked at each other then and Eren started to laughed at me. I joined with him after the tension and adrenaline left me.

"Alright, alright, you win. You're right. I shouldn't have put us in harm's way. Thank you for helping me." Eren said. My eyes widened at his sincerity. This was a side to Eren that I've never seen. I felt my face flush in embarrassment.

"Well at least now you know, now stop picking fights you know you can't win. Make a logical retreat next time I'm not here."

"No because I can count on you for being there for me anyway." Eren said, as we made our way toward the castle.

"Wow, already thinking that far ahead aren't you?" Eren laughed and shoved me again. I hit him with the sword. Although it was a scary day, it was...nice.

9:28 August 7th

Today is the anniversary of when I strode into the castle all bloodied and cut up. I can't believe it's already been a year since I've been here. How time flies. My husband would have turned 31 at the end of this month. To say I miss my family would be an understatement. I miss my mom's cooking. I miss talking to my brother and my crazy dad. I miss my beautiful son and daughter. I miss my husband. I was wallowing a bit in my loneliness today. I didn't want to go out today but I knew that Eren would get me up anyway. I thought that today would just be a regular day of training but it turned out the day wasn't as bad as I thought it would be.

I got up and was about to put on my armor when someone knocked on the door.

"Nia? Don't put on your armor. We're going to the marketplace." Eren said through the door. I shrugged. I put on my usual servant clothes and went outside. Eren was standing against the wall. Eren looked up and down with a frown on his face.

"Is that really all you have to wear?" He said. I rolled my eyes.

"Of course. It's either this or the armor. Take it or leave it." I said. Eren looked pensive, shrugged, and then started to walk. I followed after him. I waved to the people in the castle that I recognized. The guards opened the main doors and we were off. It was a bit of a walk to get into the city. It was nice taking the scenic route. August meant that it was slightly warm since summer was ending so it wasn't blazing outside. After we walked through the gates into the city, we followed a few paths, made a few turns, and we were in the marketplace. There were many shopkeepers trying to sell Eren a few things since they knew he was the son of the Teryn. Eren turned them down and didn't buy anything. We went over to the tailor district first.

At this point I couldn't help myself. I didn't really care too much about my appearance when I was back home. I never put on make up and wore only things that were comfortable, but the fabrics that they sold here were really pretty. I went to touch a few of them. Some were plainly made of cotton. Others of silk or linen. Most that tailors sold were plain or one color. Colors that were readily found, like yellow or green, were cheaper. Blues and purples were harder to get. Then there was plaidweave, that was just a funny looking design overall.

"Are you looking for something dear? I just got this beautiful silk from Orlais, a discount just for you my dear." The shopkeeper said.

"Oh I'm not here to buy anything, I'm just admiring your stock."I said. Then Eren had to put in his two cents.

"Why don't you get an outfit made? You didn't look half bad with that dress from the party." Eren said.

"You mean the party where you told me I'd be nothing but a servant and I washed your face with wine?" Eren just scowled at me and I smirked. Then Eren took off his pouch and gave it to me. It jangled with money.

"Today you have been with us for a year. You have kept my family company and have even managed to teach Oren. You have done things that we didn't need to force you into. You deserve a gift. You can get anything from the marketplace." Eren said softly. "If you want to of course. This is a gift from all the family. I'm just here to look pretty." And there's that lovable smirk again. Sometimes I just wanted to punch him in the face. I shook my head lightly and looked around for something. Just to make sure I knew I was working with, I opened the pouch.

There was easily 5 sovereigns. I quickly closed it up. That was a lot of money. Immediately I thought to save it. Then I thought, 'Who would I save it for?' So we both looked around. I decided to get a couple of black outfits. Long sleeved shirt and pants. We left the tailor and I went to the cobbler to order some comfortable boots. After that we browsed other stores. I found a cat statuette that I liked and bought that too. After walking around for a bit, we started to get hungry and decided to go to a local tavern for some food. We found a small table near the window and Eren order a plate of sandwiches just for us.

"This day isn't going that bad. What made you want to take me out?" I said, waiting for the food.

"I just wanted to celebrate the day you came. There really isn't much of a reason besides that." Eren said, stretching in his seat.

"Weird how we've both changed since that day. Well you haven't changed too much. You've just started to treat me better along with other servants."

"That's because you have opened that opportunity. I'll admit, I'm not...as nice as I should be. Meeting you made realize that so...thank you." I gasped in mock horror.

"Eren Cousland, thanking a mere servant? Perish the thought!"

"Sh! Don't say it so loud. I still have a reputation to uphold you know." Eren said, rubbing his goatee. I just laughed and he smiled at me. After we got our food, Eren went on one of his tangents of battle while I humored him. We took a tour around the blacksmiths. Eren was eyeing a piece of equipment while I just wondered if I could find something that didn't weigh as much. I didn't have much success so I left the blacksmiths to Eren. As I walked around, I spotted something where the jeweler's were. They were small gold hoop earrings. They looked so pretty. That was another one of my weakness, jewelry or anything shiny.

"Um how much do these cost?" I asked.

"Ah! I see you have an eye for quality! It took a fine hand to make these pair. How about...1 sovereign?" The shopkeeper said. The one sovereign probably had more gold than the earrings but I really wanted them. Besides I still had plenty of money left over.

"Done!" I said. I gave him the gold piece. I took the earrings and tried putting them in. After a few tries and poking some blood, I knew I was going to need a mirror for this.

"Where were you?" Eren said, coming near me.

"Just saw something I had to buy." I showed him the earrings and he gave me a pat on the head.

"Come, it's already starting to get late. We should head home." I nodded and we made our way back. I said a quick good night to Eren and went to my room. I placed the things I bought into my drawers. My outfits would be made in a few days and they would deliver them to the castle. I took a small mirror out and placed it before me. It has been a while since I saw myself and I almost did a double take. I always had some weight due to my pregnancies but that was all but gone. Just some skin that sagged slightly in my mid section. My skin got darker to an almost mocha color. I got more freckles on my face due to the sun. My muscles were a lot more pronounced. My face looked tighter from losing the weight. The rest of me stayed the same, dark brown hair and dark brown eyes.

I didn't look too bad, maybe slightly above average. I still had my smile wrinkles and the bags under my eyes but those have always been there. I didn't dwell too much on my appearance. I didn't like my body anyway but with the way it was, I had to rethink that. I took the earrings out and tried putting them in. I had to break the skin slightly since it's been a while since I had earrings but they fit perfectly. I had to remember to put some sort of glue on it to make sure they wouldn't fall off.

All in all, it was a good day.

9:28 Haring/December 12th

Training has been paying off. The swords still felt heavy, but I was able to swing them around pretty good now. Eren had me facing off new recruits. They were better than me since they've been training longer than I have. Even I'm surprised I got this far in so little time. Still, I could do with less bruising. Most of the time the recruits were able to beat me but every day I lasted longer in battle. Eren gave me pats on the back or rubbed my hair whenever I did good. It made me feel great that I was finally learning how to really fight. Well I needed to try out those daggers but Eren said I wasn't ready for them yet. Eventually!

Oren had been a really good kid so far. Another year and now he's 4 years old now. Thinking about it, my son's birthday has passed again. He'd be 3 and my daughter would be 2 tomorrow. Oh yeah and I'm 24! Sometime's its easier to forget all this time is passing. I swear with the amount of training Eren has me doing every single day is enough to make boot camp seem like band camp. Well that's all for the updates. Time to turn in.

9:29 Wintermarch 1st

Happy New Year!

9:29 Cloudreach 19th

It's been a week since I've been practicing with my knuckle knives. Eren told me that they are practical. It always felt more natural to have the dagger pointing behind me. It's a bit hard to work with, but I am trying to make the style work. I have to really get down and dirty in the fighting. After all, the knuckles require me to get right in the face of the enemy to punch them. Punch and stab, punch and slice. Not bad really. So far I've only been training with Eren. He was able to block most of the attacks. Eren was wary letting me train with the recruits in case something bad were to happen.

Eren always kept potions nearby just in case. I might still be in training, but things have been known to happen from time to time. Also today was a special day for Eren. Today he gets his mabari hound. Eren tried not to show it but I knew he'd been waiting for this for a very long time.

I followed him toward where the kennels were. They were in a cabin away from the city so it was a bit of a walk. The kennel master was already waiting for him. Eren was jittery and anxious as the kennel master led him into a building. I couldn't follow him. Mabaris are sensitive to the imprinting process. It's the reason that the kennel master had to be away from the city. It wasn't too bad of a day though. I enjoyed the scenery as we walked and being out of the castle was always a welcome change. The trees were budding with various new flowers and leaves. There was a light wind out which made my hair go all over the place. I've almost been here for 2 years and I still haven't cut my hair. It could very well touch my butt now. I needed to cut it one of these days.

After standing outside the door for a while, the kennel master and Eren came out with a small ball of fur in his arms. The puppy had light brown fur, dark eyes, and his ears were still floppy. They would probably cut those ears later. I resisted the urge to cuddle the puppy. Eren had a soft and warm look about him. Another side of him that I learned.

"Say 'Hi Nia. My name is Alfred.'" Eren said in a soft voice. The puppy woofed and was trying to squirm out of his arms. He looked at me with those big puppy eyes. Mabari puppies are so cute! Eren lost himself for a moment and cooed at him. I tried not to smile but he just looked at me and glared.

"Mention this to anyone and I'll have you thrown off the roof."

"My lips are sealed, my lord."

9:29 Kingsway 21st

We're getting closer and closer to the day when Rendon Howe is coming. I'm getting nervous. It's almost the year when the blight is coming. Even though I've been getting better and better, I haven't had a real fight yet. Highever isn't like Denerim. The guards here are actually competent.

Everyday I looked at Eren's family. I knew I won't be able to save all of them. Bryce would be with Howe the day of the attack. Oriana and Oren alone in their room. Fergus would be traveling to Ostagar. If I'm with Bryce, Oriana and Oren would die. If I try to protect Oriana and Oren, Eren's parents would die.

It makes me sick to my stomach the fact that I must choose who should live and die. This isn't right but the Maker here isn't very fair. Like the old testament God who was all thunder, lighting and floods.

I hope when the time comes I'll be able to make a decision.

9:30 Wintermarch 15th

It's...It's been a long day. The day's events are fresh in my mind and the shock was almost too much for me. I was right when I said that this journal would contain my sanity.

Eren took me out into the city for his rounds. It was a long and harsh winter. Food was a bit scarce and people were becoming very irritable. There were fights for food and we had to cut down on the food in the castle to serve to the people. It didn't make much of a difference. Eren decided to help the guard. The people have been teetering on the edge, more and more were causing havoc. The guard were becoming overwhelmed.

The people who weren't making trouble, stayed inside their homes. Vendors weren't coming and going like they usually where. The city was quiet as we walked around. The only sounds were our feet crunching the snow. My breath coming out in puffs due to the cold. My fingers kept twitching. I felt like I was being watched. We weren't alone. I kept on looking around us but there were always shadows sneaking away here and there. I could never catch them with my eyes. My heart started to race.

"Eren-"

"Shush. We're being followed." I didn't bother to look back. I knew they were there. I heard light footsteps. Eren stopped with me at his side. Soon a band of 7 men came out of the shadows.

"Afternoon my lord. We are but humble men, in need of a donation. If you would be so kind..." He started to say. These guys were decked with armor and very well equipped. I gulped, my hands going to my daggers that were on my belt.

"Of course." Eren said, taking out his pouch. The men laughed and took out their weapons. Eren's friendly smile went away. The fight started. Eren got out his shield and long sword. I got my knuckle daggers but I was extremely scared. This wasn't training, this was a real fight where I could get hurt or worse. Eren bumped one of the attackers straight in the face, and stabbed downward. Three of them focused on him, the other three on me. I remembered my training. The three men started to slash and stab. I dodged as much as possible. I felt their swords dinging my armor. He was right. Medium armor holds up much better than leather.

I saw an opening and I managed to stab one in the calf. He was left screaming on the floor. I got two more to deal with. They were overpowering me, trying to drive me into a corner. They were laughing manically. These guys didn't care about the money, they were trying to kill us. Time seemed to go so slow. I punched one of the face and heard a crunch. That made the last one angry. He came at me, trying to cut me around my head, using the fact I didn't wear a helmet to his advantage. I dodged as much as I could, but the snow was quickly becoming slush from all of the movement.

There wasn't a lot of friction to work with and I fell. He stabbed downward and I rolled out of the way, but he kept coming. I switched one of my daggers the other way and his momentum carried him. He raged toward me and I turned toward him, he didn't stop and the dagger pierced him in the gut. He looked at me with shock. I stared back, my breathing irregular. I just stabbed him. I quickly got my dagger out and blood started to pour out. Bright red blood on pure white snow. He groaned, held a hang over his wound, and fell onto the slush. I started to panic. I just killed a man.

I just killed someone.

Eren came over and grabbed me by the arm. We hightailed it out of there without looking back. We were both dinged up badly and Eren got a cut on his nose. My dagger and arm were still slick with blood. That was all I could see at the moment. Blood on white. Clear as day.

We found a couple of guards. Eren talked to them but I couldn't hear anything. I just stared at the snow, the blood coming down my dagger, spots of red on white. I've always been an empathetic person. My husband said I'm a humanitarian. I couldn't hurt anyone on purpose.

But I just killed someone.

My husband would never look at me the same way. I can't look at myself in the same way. Monsters are monsters but I just killed a person.

There was blood on my hands. There was red on white.

"Nia!" Eren shouted, his hand waving in my face. I just stared at him. Eren sighed and I think he said he was sorry, but I couldn't tell. Eren took me by the hand and he led me home. Eren led me to my room and told me to take off the armor. After I did he took my armor to get it cleaned. Eren gave me the rest of the day off. All I did was just sit on my bed and stare at the wall for who knows how long. I got out my journal and my charcoal pencil, my pen long dry.

I'm a murderer. That's going to stay with me for the rest of my life.

I prayed for forgiveness that night, but my hands will always be stained with blood.

Just like the bright red blood on pure white snow.

* * *

**My husband told me that if I was ever in the position that I needed to kill someone, I would either break or do an amnesia stunt and just forget about it all to protect my mind. I mean, I cry when I read something about kids getting hurt! That's how sensitive I am. Anyway, we're down to the wire! We're almost done with filler! Yay!**

**Shout-out to phalanx2131, , broadcastdct, Airchampion, and chaosrin for favoriting/following this story! :D Over 600 views?! You guys are so awesome!**

**redrosemary: I know right? I made him such a douche lol**

**That button on the bottom of the page will make the filler go by faster. Just a suggestion :3**


	7. In death, there is life

9:30 Kingsway 14th

It happened. I knew that this day would come. Rendon Howe has made his attack and Duncan wasn't there. The worst has happened. The inn that I'm staying at is very unfamiliar but the day's events are fresh in my mind.

I was following Eren around the castle. The soldier's under Bryce's command were due to follow Fergus out of the castle to go battle the darkspawn out in the Korcari wilds. Eren was summoned by his father into the main hall and I followed him inside.

"Ah pup, I didn't see you there. Howe, you remember my son, Eren?" Bryce said. I was standing right next to the door with my armor on. Rendon Howe. Oh my blood boiled when I saw him. I saw a cold detachment in his eyes when he saw Bryce and Eren. He had them right were he wanted them and I couldn't do anything to stop him. Well not necessarily anything. I've been trying to convince everyone and anyone that I was close with not to come today when I heard that Howe was coming. Only a few listened to me because the Couslands needed all hands to help with sending off the soldiers. In the end, I couldn't do much.

"He has grown into a fine, young man. Pleased to meet you."

"And to you as well Lord Howe. You haven't brought your family here with you?" Howe chuckled.

"No, no. I had them stay in Amaranthine up north to stay away from the fighting. They do sent their wishes. My daughter Delilah, though, has asked about you. Maybe the next time I visit I should bring her." I scowled. All this talk to keep up appearances. I had to bite my lip in order to not say anything.

"Isn't Delilah a bit young for marriage?" Eren asked.

"Oh trust me my boy, those years become less noticeable much later. A lesson hard won." Bryce laughed.

"I doubt you'll get him to be receptive to the idea my friend. My boy has a mind of his own these days, Maker Bless his heart."

"It seems that the apple does not stray far from the tree your Lordship. Very well done." Howe chuckled. I didn't want to be there but I was still Eren's bodyguard and had to follow him everywhere.

"At any rate, there is a reason why I summoned you pup. While your brother and I are away, you will be in charge of the castle." I had to fight a snort. I knew Eren would be overjoyed with that.

"I will do my best father." Eren said with pride.

"Thank you pup. Only a few of our forces will stay. You must keep peace in the region, do you understand Eren?"

"Of course father. Nothing will befall Highever when you leave."

"Good. Now that I have giving you your responsibilities go and see your brother. He should be leaving very soon. You don't want to miss the opportunity to say good-bye." Bryce said.

"It was nice meeting you, son." Howe said. I was clenching and unclenching my fists. My stomach dropped to the floor. Duncan wasn't here which meant that I had to make sure that Eren survived the next day. We went out of the main hall and Eren took a look over the castle.

"Teryn Eren Cousland, sounds like a dream." Eren said.

"It's only going to be a dream. You're only going to be in charge while your brother and father are away." I said. Eren's face dropped when I said that.

"It's true. I wish I was also in the battle alongside them but someone must stay here. You know what they say about mice when the cat is away." Eren said.

"There you are my lord. Good Afternoon Nia." Ser Gilmore said coming up to us.

"Yo."

"What is it Gilmore?"

"Your mabari hound is causing trouble in the kitchens again. Your mother has requested that I fetch you to collect your dog."

"Alfred got into the larder again, didn't he?" I said.

"That dog is too smart for his own good. Well, I'll take care of this. Nia, you can go and say good bye to my brother. I'll be there in a minute." Eren said, ruffling my hair.

"Alright, don't get bit."

"Wouldn't dream of it." Eren and Gilmore went off while I went to where Fergus' room was. I saw Eleanor with Lady Landra, her lady-in-waiting Iona with her son Dairren.

"Good Afternoon, my lady." I said, bowing slightly.

"Nia, how odd that you aren't by Eren's side."

"Oh he heard that Alfred is causing a ruckus at the larder again and went to get him."

"Oh that mabari has been nothing but trouble since Eren has gotten him. Lady Landra this is Nia, my son's personal bodyguard."

"Very nice to meet you. I remember Eren mentioning you the last time at Eleanor's spring salon."

"He mentioned me? That's a first."

"I think I remembered you from the last tourney where Eren defeated me." Dairren said.

"Yeah. Eren was pretty proud of himself that day. Don't worry, he's really that stuck up all the time."

"This is my lady-in-waiting, Iona. Please say something dear."

"It is my pleasure Nia."

"Likewise."

"Nia was also the lady-in-waiting to my daughter-in-law, Oriana."

"Until you gave me to Eren so he wouldn't get into so much trouble."

"And you have done a marvelous job on that Nia."

"I try. Anyway, I'd like to stay and chat but I would like to say goodbye to Fergus while I still have the chance. Eren should be passing by here in a minute."

"Of course Nia, go along."

"It was nice meeting you all." I said. My stomach twisted in knots again. These people will be dead no matter what I could do. I went toward the bedrooms and only one was open. Fergus, Oriana, and Oren were all talking to each other.

"But why do you have to go papa?"

"So I can defeat all the darkspawn that have gathered at Ostagar Oren." I knocked on the door and they all looked to where I was.

"Hey."

"Nia!" Oren shouted and hugged me. I lifted him up before handing him back to Fergus.

"It's good to see you Nia."

"Good to see you to, my lord. So you're going to be battling darkspawn huh?"

"I keep telling him to stay and let his younger brother go but he tells me it's an older brother's responsibility to protect his home." Oriana said, crossing her arms.

"Oh don't worry love. I will come back to you in one piece."

"I'm here to say good-bye Fergus. It's going to be quiet without all of you around."

"Don't worry. I have heard the Grey Wardens are already assembling at Ostagar. Once we have stomped down the threat, I will be marching right back here. I know that you'll be keeping an eye on my younger brother."

"I don't know if I should be insulted." Eren said, coming in. He gave me a playful shove and I punched his shoulder. Fergus laughed.

"Wipe your eyes love, this is no time for tears."

"Should I wait outside while you two finish what you've started?" Fergus laughed.

"When you have a special woman in your life Eren, you'll understand."

"If you ask me there's been several so far in his life." I said.

"A real woman, not a turn in the straw."

"Fergus!"

"Do you like playing in the barn as well Uncle? The straw feel so soft!"

"Oren don't tell me you've been playing in there again, I'll send you to Mother Mallol if I find straw in your clothes again."

"But she talks forever mama!" I laughed at all of this. It would soon be the past.

"Besides saying good bye to you, Father wanted me to tell you to continue on without him." Fergus scoffed.

"Then the arl's men are delayed. It's as if they were all walking backwards! Well, I need to start marching. Who knows? If I get there too late, the darkspawn would have all been killed."

"I hope you wouldn't have left without saying good-bye to your parents." Bryce said as he and Eleanor walked into the room.

"Be well my son. I will be praying for you every day." Oriana started to say a prayer but Fergus still put his commentary in. I recognized all of this from the game but I couldn't stop my heart from beating. Eren excused me for the day as I saw Iona waiting for him in his room. I wanted to face palm but I had to keep my head straight for what was going to come. Oriana, Oren, and I went to see Fergus go off with the soldiers. Oriana went to go to her room with Oren and I said goodbye to her as well.

After that, I ran out into the city to catch a carriage. I showed him on the map where he needed to be and paid him a couple of extra silvers to make sure he'd be there. My hands were twitching, my heart was pumping, and I felt slightly light headed. I got to my room. I had to take deep breaths and I made myself calm down. I grabbed my knuckle daggers and got what I needed. I made sure to pack all my money, which was quite a bit. I grabbed all my things that was from my own world to put into my pack. I couldn't leave them here in case someone found them. I knew where to put them. After that I went around the castle, trying to talk to anyone that would listen to be to stay out of the castle. Most of the elven servants listened to me and stayed out. The guard had to stay to make sure Eren and the other were able to get away.

Some people made this castle their home and there was no way I could convince them to leave. At this point the sun was starting to go down. I realized that I've done all that I could do. That's when I had to make my choice. Should I go over to Bryce or go to the bedrooms? Would I be able to fight off Howe by myself? I stood there against the wall, thinking about all the possibilities. At last I made my choice and decided to go the bedrooms. I'm sorry Bryce. I'm so sorry.

Night fell and things were quiet. Way too quiet but all the soldiers already left. I went toward the bedrooms. They were going to attack Oriana and Oren. They had no way to protect themselves. As long as I can get there first, then everything will be fine. Or so I thought. I grabbed the key and unlocked the door. I locked it again and sat in a corner, waiting.

It was nerve wrecking just sitting there. Then I heard the shouting and the banging. The fighting has begun. I took out my weapon. It's now or never. I heard one of the rooms opening. Oriana stepped outside. She probably heard the noise.

"Mum? What's all that noise?" I heard Oren and then the door started to crack. They were already breaking through. I get up and shove Oriana back into her room.

"Don't open this door, no matter what! Shove anything you can against it! Protect Oren!" I shouted, and then the door gave way. A band of three men came. Two archers, one swordsman. Oriana had shut the door just on time. I made my roll and made the swordsman tumble. My hands felt like they had ants crawling all over them. The archers were already taking out their weapons and then I stabbed the one that I knocked down in the throat. I had to dodge more arrows and left my dagger embedded in his throat.

They rushed toward me, another archer coming through the door. I heard Alfred's frantic barking. I saw the door being pushed open. The archer made easy work of Iona. Alfred took the initiative. He was no longer the puppy I gave scraps to. He was a mean, brown hulk of muscle. He launched himself at the archer, his arm in his jaw.

I dodged and avoided as much as I could. I jumped and stabbed one in the back but had to dodge more arrows. Doing so left me without a weapon. I had to back off when the other one tried to swing his sword at me. I backed up into a wall. Then Eren came and used his shield to knock the man back. I let him do his thing and got my daggers off the other man's back and throat.

Two more men came in the room. Alfred went for one. Eren and I went for the other one until the enemy had an arrow stuck in his throat. Alfred quickly killed the other one. There were no more coming in.

"Eren, Nia! Are you hurt?" Eleanor said. Eren gaped when he saw his mother in full studded leather armor.

"No we're fine." I said. I went over to Oriana's door and knocked. "Oriana! It's ok now!" I heard the movement of a drawer. She came out with Oren in her arms.

"What's going on?" Oriana nearly shouted.

"Howe, that's what." I growled.

"It's true. These men hold Howe's crest! I can't believe it! He's attacking us while we're without soldiers! Eren, did you see your father? He never came to bed." Eleanor said, tears developing in her eyes.

"He stayed behind to talk to Howe. We have to get to him!" Eren said. He went out the door first. I stayed at his side, Alfred on the other side of him. Eleanor kept her bow nearby. Oriana held tightly to Oren. I motioned for Eren stay still. I tip toed quietly along the wall. I saw a gang of 5 around the corner. I motioned to Eleanor to come closer. I put my hand on Alfred's head.

"When she releases the arrow, charge." I whispered to him. He growled in response. I gave my signal and Eleanor shot an arrow. It went through a man's ankle. Alfred went like the hulking beast he is. It was almost like a bowling ball going through pins. Eren was right behind him. I stayed with Oriana and Eren to protect them. One came close to Eleanor and I came out of the shadows. I gave him a sucker punch. I heard a crack from his jaw. He held it in pain and I gave him another punch that nearly twisted his neck.

I looked at Eren and he was finishing off the last one. We went through the rooms. Servants screaming, a couple of the guards doing all they can to help anyone. They joined us as we came closer and closer to the gate. I saw Aldous' body and my heart wrenched in my chest. I'm sorry. My grief can wait. We made a slight detour grabbing the sword and shield of Highever. Eren donned them quickly. Oriana and Oren making sure they stay as far away from the fighting as possible. I stayed right by their side to make sure no one touched them. We made it to the gate. Ser Gilmore and the rest of the guards going up against Howe's men.

I stayed behind to protect Oriana and Oren. I blame myself. One of the archers that we fought was playing dead and shot one arrow. Oriana screamed in pain and Oren screamed in fear. I looked back. The archer had another arrow ready but I was already running towards him. I ran in a zig zag pattern. His arrow missed me and I tackled him. We rolled around a bit before I punched him repeatedly in the face. He stopped moving after my fourth punch but I heard Oren's crying.

Oriana had one arrow embedded into her shoulder. Oren was screaming frantically which didn't help.

"I'm sorry." I said and I took out the arrow without any delicacy. Oriana screamed from the pain. I looked back into the main hall. Only the mage was left but with about 10 armored guys coming around her, she didn't stand a chance. I carried Oren and led Oriana inside.

"Ser Gilmore, did you see my husband?" Eleanor asked.

"Yes but he was heavily wounded. He said he was going into the servants entrance in the larder. We will stay here and make sure no one comes through the main gates. You must hurry, all of you!" Gilmore said. I felt a pang in my heart. He knew he wouldn't survive but he'll do anything to protect everyone. I prayed for Gilmore as we went through the doors. We had some guards following us. It made the fighting a lot more easier. I noticed a hitch in Oriana's step and then she fell.

"Mama!" Oren shouted. I shushed him quickly and went toward her. She looked pale and her breathing was erratic. Eren rushed by her side. Oriana was sweating and clammy.

"What's happening?" Eren wondered, with panic in his voice.

"The...arrow..." Oriana wheezed. I felt my stomach sink to the floor. The arrow was poisoned. My guilt will stay with me.

"She got a hit by an arrow while we were waiting outside. I took down the archer but he-he must have poisoned them!" I explained. Eren looked to Oriana, with despair in his eyes.

"M-Mama." Oren wailed. Oriana's hand wobbled as she strained for him. I knelt down and they held hands.

"Be...a good boy...I love...you...Maker protect..." Oriana's hand fell limp. I grabbed Oren and tried to console him. We were living on borrowed time. There were men stationed at the entrance. I stayed back, Oren crying into my shoulders. My own tears flowing down my cheeks. We managed to get to the larder. The guards left us to continue holding the main gates. Bryce was on the floor, blood pooling around him. Nan, Thellan, Awell, you will be missed. I'm sorry.

"Oh my dear boy." He said. Eleanor came to his level. "You must leave my love. You can't stay here."

"No! We can leave! The exit is right there! We can find a healer!"

"I won't let you die!" Eren shouted. I heard something breaking.

"We can't stay here. We have to leave!" I shouted. There was a still moment and Eleanor took out her bow.

"Eren, Nia, go."

"What!? No! Come with me mother!" Eren pleaded. She gave him a soft smile.

"I'll kill every man that comes through this door to buy you some time."

"Warn your brother pup. Tell him of Howe's treachery. Live." Bryce said. He wasn't going to survive for long. Eren was sobbing.

"I love you both. So much." Bryce came by Eleanor and they were speaking softly to each other. Eren moved the bags of flour.

"Nia, please take care of Eren and Oren. Goodbye." Eleanor said and a great crash was heard throughout the walls. The main gate has fallen. We scrambled into the opening and ran through the exit. Eren shoved the door open. I motioned him to follow me. I made sure to memorize every tree, bush and step in the past 3 years I was here. I finally found the carriage. The driver seemed to be surprised to see us 3 and a mabari. I told him to step on it. We took a few back paths away from the castle into the city. I made sure to check the window to make sure we weren't being followed.

To our luck we weren't. We went pass the city limits, downward towards Denerim. We've stopped in a small inn near a farm. Eren is sharing a bed with Oren. I have enough money to get us to Denerim. We might be able to get there in a week's time with carriage or horse back by ourselves. I feel drained. I feel my emotions bottled up inside me but I have no time to grieve. I have to keep going, for all our sake. I have to be strong.

9:30 Kingsway 15th

We grabbed a carriage and headed towards Denerim. Eren had this mask of despair and Oren didn't really want to eat. It was a very silent drive. We camped out and I made a small stew for everyone. I made sure to pay the driver. He said that me might be able to make it in 3 days time if we're lucky.

We made a small campfire to ward away any wild animals. Oren was sleeping in the wagon after crying in my lap for the past hour. Eren was watching the fire with dead eyes. I felt so tired, an entire weight of all the lives lost in Highever. The driver was snoring away in his cot. The stew was barely touched. I went to sit by Eren. He didn't move the entire time, just staring at the flame.

"You need to eat Eren. You need your strength." I said, showing him a small bowl of the stew. He looked at me for a moment and took the bowl.

"...I should have dragged my mother away..." Eren said softly, raising the bowl to his lips. I felt a stab through my heart. The tears forming in my eyes again.

"I'm sorry."

"No...thank you...you saved me. I'm in your debt." Eren said.

"No, don't say that. I only did what I could now eat." Eren ate in silence. I looked up to the two moons in the sky and prayed. I prayed for forgiveness for my failure, for what I had to do. I'm sorry. I'm sorry.

"I have to find my brother. I have...I have to let him know...what...what happened." Eren said, his voice full of emotion. He covered his eyes and cried. His shoulders shaking. I put a hand on his shoulder but Eren grabbed me and hugged me tight. I felt his hot breath against my neck as he tried to cover up his sobs. I felt my own tears give way. We sat there, hugging each other for dear life. Eren kept on repeating his apologies which cut into my own heart. It was my own fault that I wasn't able to do more. We eventually ended up sleeping together for comfort. In the morning we prepared to go to Denerim. The wagon was not a smooth ride but Oren was quiet. Eren kept giving me small smiles here and there on our trip.

I know he felt right to give me thanks but it just cut so deep. My wrists were hurting and I didn't want to move. This is my failure and I can never offer anything more than my apologies.

9:30 Kingsway 18th

We made it to Denerim. We're only here to stock up though. Oren seemed to be in a better mood. It was hard keeping track of him in the Denerim marketplace. In the game it was always barren, but there was so many people here!

It smelled really bad as well. They weren't kidding when it smelled like wet dog. In Highever there was some semblance of cleanliness. Here? Not so much. There were times where I just carried Oren because I was extremely wary of the puddles. Ugh. There was also another reason why I needed to go through the marketplace.

I managed to take Oren to Eren who was trying to haggle a price for a wagon to take us to Lothering. I was alone with my pack. I had to take care to make sure no one stole what I had. I saw the tavern and where Brother Genitivi was living. I wondered if the fake Weylon was there. I passed the Wonders of Thedas and saw the door leading into the warehouse. I knew that no one rarely ventured in there since it belonged to the guards. I discreetly went inside. I saw the loose bookshelf that held Duncan's shield. I looked at the floor board and kept an ear out to any hollow points. I found one and took off the board. I wrapped my phone and my wallet two times with some clothe and found a small chest in the warehouse. I put my things inside and locked it. I put the chest in through the floorboard, the key buried next to it. I'll come back to it eventually.

I came out of the warehouse, striding confidently so no one would be suspicious of anything. I was still wearing my armor so they might take me as a guard. I went back to where Oren and Eren was. He was able to get another wagon. We packed our things and headed out as soon as we could. Eren didn't say much and Alfred kept trying to make him happy. It wasn't working too much. I was able to get some bone scraps to keep Alfred happy at least.

Oren kept on talking about the marketplace but there were times when he would just clam up. I'm sorry Oren that I wasn't able to save Oriana. Well, hopefully we can get to Lothering without incident.

9:30 Kingsway 23rd

Nothing happened as we were traveling to Lothering. Eren already left as soon as we touched down to go to Ostagar. He promised me that he would come back and to wait for him. After Eren left, I was able to secure a room for me and Oren. I paid for a good two weeks so I guess that saving did something.

A day already passed since Eren left. I woke up extremely early, the sun wasn't up in the sky. Oren was still sleeping when I went to the Chantry. The Lothering's Chantry was much bigger than the castle's. Oh poor Mother Mallol. No. I must stay focused.

I prayed for Eren and Alfred. I prayed for the soldiers at Ostagar. I prayed that everyone that died at the castle found some reprieve. I prayed so much that I didn't realize the people coming in. There were some trickling in since their farms were near Ostagar. They were paranoid that the darkspawn would come here. They weren't too far off.

I came by to get Oren and we mostly spent our time in the Chantry. He found a few kids to play with. Oren seemed to be in better spirits now. I spent most of my time on the pews just praying and crying silently. I did get a surprise though.

Oren was off playing when I felt someone sit next to me.

"Are you alright?" I looked over and recognized her immediately. Leliana. My face was tear soaked. "Oh you poor thing. What happened?" Her worry was sincere.

"The family that I was taking care of for the past 3 years have been massacred. Their youngest child just went to Ostagar to warn his brother. Heh, I'm just here taking care of his nephew." I said, wiping my tears. She sat in silence with me.

"There are time the Maker isn't fair, but there is a reason why you are here."

"Yeah I know. At least I was able to save a few. I just wished that I was able to do something more. Save more people."

"You are but one woman, yes? There is only so much you can do. You were able to save a few and that means something."

"Yeah, at this time I could only pray for them."

"It looks like you aren't the type to just sit and pray though." I raised my eyebrow. "I'm sorry if I-"

"No. It's ok. Sometimes you just have to cry to stay sane you know?" We sat in silence again and the brothers started to chant. It made me feel uncomfortable. I accepted all religions but I thought I was insulting them just staying here. I accepted that I could pray here since it was a holy place, but listening to them wasn't something I could do.

"Ah, the chant always makes me feel at peace." I squirmed.

"Well, I think I should get going."

"Wait!" I kinda gave her a look since she nearly shouted. The other parishioners gave us glances and I led her away.

"What is it?" Leliana looked at the floor.

"I had a dream. A dream of the blight and in this dream, I saw you with a warm light next to you. I do not know what role you play, but I know that you will make grand decisions. The Maker has shown me. I want to follow you and where ever you go."

"Hmph, well then. Welcome aboard. Though we won't be any world saving for a bit." Leliana giggled. Well at least my week won't be that boring now.

* * *

**Woah almost 9 hundred views?! You guys are awesome! :D Also I update every single time I complete a chapter. I always try to be at least 10 chapters ahead of everything :3**

**Shout out to shinedown (love that band), Tashie Shadow, OverseerBishop, and helenGet for following/favoriting this story!**

**redrosemary: Well she can't accuse Howe or stop the attack. Remember that Bryce was Howe's best friend. She couldn't just accuse him right there, or stop a whole army from taking the castle. She could only save who she could.**

**shinedown: I tried to do something a little different from the stuff I have already read. Hopefully I'll be a little original.**

**helenGet: I hope this is fast enough for you :3**


	8. Story Begins!

9:30 Kingsway 23rd

"I can't believe it. I heard about the attack on Highever castle, but I would never believe that such a thing would happen." Leliana said. She has been with me ever since telling me about her vision. Having Leliana with me was a welcome distraction. I had to keep my mind busy. If not my mind would just keep thinking. Thinking is bad for me, focus good.

"Yeah. Luckily I was able to get Eren and Oren out...Oren's mother...didn't make it. A poisoned arrow found her." I explained. It didn't ease the guilt and it reminded me of what happened, but at least someone heard me out. It wasn't good to keep it in.

"You were able to make a difference, yes? That is all that counts. The Maker was probably watching and protecting you." Leliana said. I laughed.

"Maybe. Shouldn't you be doing, I don't know, sisterly things instead of being with me in the bar?" I asked. Yes I was at the inn's bar. No I wasn't getting heavily drunk. Maybe. I needed to do something and the drink was just there!

"And what is that? Say the chant to all the farmers who have come here, running from the darkspawn? There is only so much faith can do." Leliana said, her gaze turning downward. Oh great. I didn't mean to put her down.

"But with faith we can become stronger to face what's coming." I said. It's what keeping me sane. That and this journal.

"A question if I may?"

"Go ahead."

"Are you married?" Leliana asked. Yes I am still wearing my ring. No I hadn't had any trysts. The thought didn't even cross my mind. Loyalty is hard to find these days.

"That's a good question. Yes I am but I might never see my husband or my children again." I said, trying to push down that hole of loneliness that was dying to dig me under.

"O-Oh I'm so sorry-"

"Don't worry about it. Let's just say that I come from a long ways away. I was taken and arrived in Ferelden. It's been 3 years but, I'm hoping to go back, for what it's worth." I said, chugging down some ale. Ugh. It made my stomach shiver, it was that bad.

"That's surprising. I do not know many people that would wait that long for a partner. It's very admirable." Leliana said. I chuckled. Or insane. We headed back into the Chantry. I couldn't let Oren be alone for too long. He still cried at night thinking of his mother.

"Nia! They have so many stories in the Chantry! The sisters were telling me I'm a very good boy because I listen to them." Oren said.

"That's good Oren, really good."

"Nia, do you think if I'm a good boy long enough, mama will come back?" Oren said. I felt myself go cold. How could I explain to him that his mother wasn't going to come back? I came down to his level and held Oren's hands with mine.

"Oren, your mom...she isn't coming back."

"I know that Howe was a bad man and made the men hit us, but mama is coming back. She always does. Why did we have to go so far away from mama?" Oren said, his voice breaking. I hugged him close to me. "I miss mama! Where's mama Nia?"

"Oriana...she had to protect the house ok? She's at the house but she sent us away so we can be safe! Oren, do you understand me? She's home but she sent us away to be safe." I said, wiping the tears from my face. Oren hiccuped and nodded. "Good boy Oren, let's go listen to the Chant ok?" We sat on the pews as the brothers kept on repeating the Chant. I ignored it and instead prayed to God. Leliana went and started to listen to the other people that started to come in. A few of the Templars were speaking to each other in hushed tones.

It was slow and the wait was killing me. Something had to happen. Hopefully I didn't just jinx myself.

9:30 Kingsway 24th

I was in the fade again. Every other night I come here. Since the massacre at Highever, I haven't been traversed at all. Halo was right on top of my shoulder like a parrot. It always made sure that I was ok. The scenery was the same blurry forest. There was a path but I didn't follow it. I didn't want to. I was so tired. I just wanted to sleep. Halo gave me a look that said, 'Are you ok?' I wasn't ok. I was broken.

So I cried. I cried and sobbed and cursed. I wailed and punched the floor repeatedly. I was sad, I was lonely, I was angry, I was filled with so many emotions that I could take it anymore. The bottle that was inside was cracking and everything was spilling. I couldn't let go in real life so I might as well try to let out what I can here. No one can see me or hear me. Only Halo with it's worried glances.

Halo hovered over me, not knowing what to do.

I couldn't get the images of bodies of my friends out of my head. Their lives were taking by the soldiers no matter how much I insisted that they leave. Their deaths might as well have been done by my hands. Then the people that I killed to try and protect Eren and Oren came into my mind. There was more blood on my hands. After wailing for who knows how long, I got down on my knees and prayed.

It still didn't ease the guilt in my heart.

It didn't wash away my failure and the emotions continued to pour out.

It was going to drive me mad if I'm not careful.

-/-

I found Sten. I knew he was there but I didn't really know how to approach him. How do I say 'Hey Sten! Here's some food! Get ready because the Grey Wardens are coming and need your help!'

Yeah, that didn't really go over well in my head. I was pacing near his cage. He looked so emaciated. The more I paced, the more nervous I got. I had to do something! I couldn't just let him starve! I couldn't just leave him in the cage! I was nearly tearing my hair out when I smelled something sweet. It was familiar. Then I realized, it was cookies. Sugar cookies. Lothering was much bigger than in game. I wandered into a bakery.

I knew proteins were out of the question for Sten. It would react very badly. But what about bread? Damn, all that useless information I read didn't tell me the best food for starving people! I bought a loaf of bread, some cheese and a few cookies. I tasted one and it didn't taste that bad. Still they were slightly burnt, no, focus! No pastry focus! Future Focus!

I made sure to refill my water skin. Still, I couldn't just waltz up there. How the hell would I be able to even give him all of this? But I had to do something! Just go! I wanted my feet to move!

"What are you doing?" Leliana said. She appeared out of nowhere.

"Holy Jesus Christ! Geez! You startled me." I said. I almost jumped. She giggled.

"I'm sorry. What have you there? Food? I thought that the inn was providing that?" Leliana said. I squirmed in my boots. I kept making glances to Sten and she put the two together. "You want to give him that."

"Argh! Yes! But I don't know how! I just can't make my feet move!" I groaned and stomped my foot.

"You do know what he did. He is imprisoned there for a reason." Leliana said.

"I'm not a saint either. I still killed as well." I said. That first man in the snow...no. Focus.

"For necessity. He slaughtered a whole entire family of innocents!" Leliana said.

"And I have killed men as well!" I shouted. She looked at me shocked but I was angry. "This is cruel! Inhuman! Just letting him starve? At least where I come from he has a way to defend himself! Argh! Freaking Christ!" There was no thinking to it, I just had to go over and give him the food.

I stomped over to where Sten was.

"I do not need your charity." Sten said. He was a lot bigger in person. Probably 7 foot tall. Damn.

"It's not charity."

"Sympathy then. I don't need it." Sten said. I wanted to shout at the heavens.

"It's not sympathy either!"

"Then-"

"Hey! I have food and I need you to eat it. You have to get stronger!" I said.

"Why is that?" Sten asked. I heard Leliana walked behind me.

"Nia-"

"You shush. Because we're going to need you. You do know that a blight is coming right?" I said.

"And how does that relate to you giving me food?" Sten wondered.

"Nia he killed-!"

"I said shush! What if I say I knew a Grey Warden?" I said, hoping that he would take my bluff. Truthfully I didn't know if Eren even survived the joining or if he even became a Grey Warden. I just had to have faith.

"A Grey Warden? Is there one here?"

"Well, no, not yet."

"Then I have no need of it."

"Oh for the love of, the army is gone. The Grey Wardens are coming and they'll need you. I can't explain it more than that." I said. He just stared at me and I stared back. "Eat it or don't. That's your choice. Just think about what I said. Please."

"Very well." I gave him the food.

"Eat slowly and not all at once." I explained. He looked at the food. "Oh and there are cookies in there as well. They're not that bad, just a little burnt."

"Cookies?"

"Yep."

"What is your name?"

"Nia."

"I am Sten, of beresaad. The vanguard of the Qunari peoples."

"Nice to meet you." I said, bowing. I started to make my way back to the Chantry. Leliana was behind me.

"What did you mean when you said you knew of a Grey Warden? And the army?" Leliana asked. I sighed.

"Eren, the one I told you who left? I think he might have turned into one of the Grey Wardens. And the army...look you said you dreamt of me right? What if I say I dreamt that the army was gone? Destroyed?" I couldn't just tell her I played this game about 15+ times for over 400 hours and got all the trophies...damn, I needed a new obsession. "The darkspawn horde is going to be coming. You should probably spread the word." She looked at me like I grew a second head. "I know that this is a lot to take in and you really don't have to believe me. Just, think about it ok?"

I left her there to go pick up Oren. He needed to eat. All this waiting is making me stand on edge. Eren when are you coming back?

9:30 Kingsway 27th

Refugees have been coming by the cart load talking about the fallen armies at Ostagar. They fell 3 days ago the day I told Leliana. She seemed skeptical until the people started to pour in. Food is becoming scarce and people are grumpy. If the army fell 3 days ago, I could only think that Eren should be here in one more day or even by today. In the end he did come.

I was in the Chantry again. It was either be here or in the inn. The inn was completely pack but the Chantry still had some room. I gave Oren a simple sandwich. I saw a lot of families in here. People looked at the food I gave Oren. I made sure to have my daggers and armor on today. I didn't want to take any chances with these people. Desperation can make them crazy. After Oren finished, he left to play again. It's good that he does. It got his mind off Oriana. Sometimes he would ask me more questions about her and all I could do was do a run around with him. Oren didn't accept his mother's death or he was too young to know of death. I decided to go to the inn again after the brother started to chant again. I didn't dislike the chant but I felt like I was insulting them for being here. My faith wasn't too different from theirs, but it was still a different god.

I opened the door to the tavern. It was hot and smelled of sweat. The band was playing in the background as people gathered and paid for food that the inn barely had. I found Leliana there with a table to herself.

"I'm sorry for doubting you." She said as soon as I sat down.

"What? About the whole Grey Warden and the army thing?" She nodded. "Don't worry about it. If someone had told me, I probably thought they were mental." I said. I ordered an ale. I had to keep my twitchiness down.

"I agree with you, regarding Sten. I knew that it was wrong to leave him there to starve, but I could only follow the mother's order. Now that the refugees are talking about the darkspawn are coming...it feels wrong to leave him in that cage. Nobody deserves that. Not even a murderer." Leliana said and I mentally jumped for joy. Woo! I'm right for once! Ok, moment ended.

"Any chances that you dreamt about Grey Wardens coming in?" I said.

"Well-"

Then a few armored men got up when I heard the door opened. I got myself ready but it was just another one of them. I sighed and sat back down. I was on edge. The ale was served and I downed it the minute it hit the table.

"I swear I'm going to get a tumor from all the worrying I'm doing." I mumbled. "I need to use the bathroom." I excused myself as Leliana started to say something. I couldn't stay in here. This waiting is really messing me up. I got out and wandered to where Sten was. I'm not sure if he ate anything or not. I'm not about to go to check. I need to relax somehow. So I just started to sing at the top of my lungs.

I'm not a bad singer. I can at least carry a tune. People looked around me as I sang. I had to only remember only happy things. After I sang two songs I heard people bolt out of the inn. That can only mean one thing: Grey Wardens have come to Lothering. I walked toward it as people are trying to get out of there as fast as they could. Then I was almost run over by one of the armored men.

"Geez, doesn't anyone know how to say excuse me?" I opened the door and there were more people than I expected. Then I heard a familiar bark. A bundle of brown fur and muscles was right in front of me.

"Alfred!" I shouted for joy and he almost knocked me down. He licked me all over, barking excitedly. I laughed as he kept on nuzzling me on the floor.

"Ooh, who's a good boy? Who's a good boy?" I cooed rubbing his face. Oh yeah, he enjoyed that.

"Nia?" I looked out to the group of people but I couldn't get a good eye on them before someone gave me a bear hug. "Oh thank the Maker." I recognized Eren and hugged him back. I felt a weight off my shoulders as I saw him. It looked like he did become a Grey Warden. I felt the tension in my body fade until I realized how long we've been hugging. I heard a very loud laugh behind him.

"Old paramour?"

"It looks like it huh?"

So I pushed him off me.

"We are not like that!" I said. I felt my cheeks flush and I finally got to see the group. Alistair, Morrigan, and two others that I didn't recognized. A dwarf who looked like Stoick from HTTYD, complete with large beard with braids. It was utterly majestic. An elf mage who looked very young, with blonde hair in a braid, a few bangs to the side. His ears were sticking out completely. Mage was easily guessed when he wore mage robes.

"Excuse me, I couldn't help but overhear that you all are Grey Wardens." Leliana said.

"What? Grey Wardens? You believe everything you hear?" The elf mage said.. Considering that Duncan didn't come to pick up Eren, there were bound to be other origins. I didn't expect these ones though at the same time, I didn't know what to expect. There were many origins to choose from, an elf mage and dwarf commoner I think? I'm going to need to ask questions to figure it out more.

"Leliana, Wardens. Wardens, Leliana." I said, standing right next to her.

"If you are Grey Wardens, then you will need my help." Leliana said.

"Why would we need it?" The elf said.

"The Maker told me so." Leliana said.

"Umm..." I started.

"Oh the Maker? Then hop aboard! Now I know we'll be alright now that we have the Maker on our side!" The elf said, sarcasm dripping from his voice. Remind me to punch him in the face. "Look we don't need your help, so-"

"Don't know about that Talen. We need all the help we can get. Welcome girly!" The dwarf said and laughed. This dude was cool in my book.

"Derek..." Talen growled. Morrigan rolled her eyes, while Alistair looked confused. I'm just here in the back with a wet dog nose in my hands.

"Ok, ok. Back up people. How about we just settle for introductions first? Probably somewhere a little more private?" I suggested.

"And who are you supposed to be?" Talen asked.

"Just a person that Eren knows, more about me later. Let's go up to my room and get rid of all this confusion we're all having."

"Where's Oren?" Eren asked.

"Give me a second. I'll explain later." We all agreed on getting to know each other and I led everyone up to the room I was renting up the stairs. 7 people plus a dog. It was pretty cramped

"So to answer your question, Talen I think? My name is Nia. Eren knows me, Leliana knows me. So how about we start at the beginning?" I said. Talen just glared and crossed his arms. Derek decided to take initiative.

"The names Derek. Was a dwarf in Orzammar, moved to Denerim. Duncan found me. We traveled to the Circle found this priss."

"Hey!"

"Then as we made our way to Ostagar, mustache decided to join us. This here is black and angry. This one, ex Templar. Now that we all made intros, let's get down to the point. We are Grey Wardens, fitted to fight back the blight. We lost so now we have to make an army from what's left. You here to join us little missy?" He said, giving me a good hard stare.

"Yep."

"What? No you can't." Eren said.

"Your opinion doesn't matter here. I'm going."

"What about Oren?" I made a face. I knew he'd bring that up.

"Oren can stay in the Chantry for the time being." Leliana said.

"No. He's coming with us." I said.

"Suffice to say that we can't have any children amongst our group." Morrigan said.

"You have to take care of him." Eren said. "Stay here."

"Shut up. I'm going."

"No."

"Yes."

"No!"

"Will you both close your traps!" Talen. "We can't have any kids running around. If you haven't noticed, we're fighting a war here. Just stick him somewhere and we'll be fine."

"No I can't trust anyone to watch over him! He's my responsibility." I said. I have to go with them. I could change things for the better or at least try!

"Why can't you just listen and stay here?" Eren said.

"I can't! I have to make sure you stay alive!" I shouted at Eren.

"And I need Oren and you to be ok!"

"What are we arguing about again?" Alistair said.

"A kid and where to put him." Derek said.

"That's easy, why not send him to Eamon? He has a kid too." Alistair said.

"See?" Eren groaned. "Besides, Redcliffe isn't even that far from here."

"Are you sure this is wise?" Morrigan asked.

"Even if you leave me behind, I'll follow you." I said stubbornly. Eren and I had our glaring match again. I heard Derek start to laugh and my face flushed again. Eren groaned.

"Fine, fine. But you're cooking." Eren said. I pouted. I hate cooking.

* * *

**We finally met most of the cast! You see? I told you that there would be multiple origins. Please feel free to criticize my tense usage, I'm still trying to keep everything in the past tense but I'm still kinda iffy about it. Even in my own journal I switch tense. It just feels easier like that, but I know most don't like it when you do things like that. Anyway!**

**Shout out to SigmaPsiSin, MaiaGen, Luna-Zeta, SleepiPanda, and Second Variety for favoriting/following this story! You guys are so awesome!**

**Over 1000 views! You like me! You really like me! Alright enough ego stoking.**

**great northern one: Hopefully this chapter answers that question :3**

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**Please Review, or Criticize, either one is appreciated :3**


	9. Templars, Abominations, and Demons, OHSH

9:30 Kingsway 28th

Things have settled down for the most part. After we got through our introductions, everyone got out of the stifling small room and went their separate ways. No doubt to get some supplies for our continuing journey. The only ones who stayed was Eren, Alfred, and I. Alfred was lounging on the bed while Eren and I sat on the chairs near the small desk. Eren told me of how he got recruited by Duncan.

"After I left you in Lothering, I marched down the path toward Ostagar. I didn't expect to find anyone as I ran but I literally ran into Talen. He wasn't happy about that but Duncan stopped him from attacking me. I explained to him why I came all the way down from Highever, to find my brother. Duncan heard from my fighting prowess from all the tourneys we had back home. He thought of recruiting me but ended up staying in Denerim. Duncan asked me to join the Grey Wardens but I turned him down. All I had in mind was to find my brother. To my surprise, Duncan conscripted me. Derek, Talen, Daveth, and Jory were with him so there was nothing I could do. With that, however, I was able to go into the war camp in order to find Fergus." Eren said and Alfred whined from the bed.

"You didn't find him did you?" I asked. Eren scoffed and shook his head.

"He was in a scouting party by the time I arrived. There was no other way. I agreed to go into the Korcari Wilds, if only to find Fergus. I completed my mission along side the others to get darkspawn blood but Alfred protected me against a darkspawn that was about to kill me. I was able to find a flower that Daveth had mentioned was able to go against the effects of the poison for mabari's. I agreed to go through the joining after seeing Alfred suffer. We came back, Alfred was taken by the kennel master with the flower to help heal him. After that, we joined Duncan who made the joining potion. Daveth died, Jory was killed by Duncan. By some odd miracle, Derek, Talen, and I all survived. Even Alistair was surprised by all of our survival. Later that night we were due to fight the darkspawn."

"I heard about the fighting from the refugees that were coming into Lothering. The army fell in Ostagar."

"We fell yes, but not because we couldn't succeed. Derek told me later, from his briefing at the war table, that Teryn Loghain had to flank the darkspawn once the beacon was lit. We were too late in lighting it. The tower was overtaken by darkspawn. Loghain fled the battle alongside all the soldiers with him."

"So how did you survive from the tower if it got overrun after the soldiers left you?" I asked even though I already knew the answer.

"While we were in the Korcari Wilds, we were asked by Duncan to find a cache with important Grey Warden treaties. There we met an apostate mage living with her mother. Her mother, Flemeth, gave us the treaties. Later, she saved all of us from the tower. Derek told me that she had shapeshifted into a dragon to save all of us but I don't believe him. Alistair was broken from losing Duncan and the rest of the army but we had to continue. Flemeth picked us up and we decided to use these treaties to good use. She offered us Morrigan as more help. I had lingering thoughts in my head, bad ones. I thought I lost Alfred but he eventually found me as we traveled to Lothering." Alfred barked.

"Damn, you went through a lot and in the end...Fergus is still missing." Eren grew silent again and got that empty look. I held his hand. "Hey, we'll find him ok?" Eren squeezed my hand and nodded. "So what's the story on the other Grey Wardens?"

"Derek was a horse trainer in Denerim." I gave him a surprised look. "I know, I had the same look as well. Derek had gotten into a scuffle with a couple of thugs and took them down with only a shovel. Duncan was watching him on the sidelines and decided to conscript him. Derek immediately agreed. He says that Grey Wardens are respected in his culture. After finding Derek, Daveth was recruited soon after. From there Duncan traveled to the Circle hoping to get a mage. Talen hasn't said anything about how he was conscripted, only that he was glad to not be in the Circle. Alistair is our senior Grey Warden. He was joined long before we came. I don't know much about him other than he was training to become a Templar until Duncan came and brought him to the Grey Wardens. Besides that, how was your stay here in Lothering."

"Boring and...just plain stressful. It wasn't easy waiting for you. I didn't know if you'd be coming back." I said, rubbing my head.

"I promised you that I would."

"Promises are broken all the time Eren." He put his hand on my shoulder.

"Not mine. We have talked long enough. We still need to get supplies if we are to go to Redcliffe to drop off Oren. Come, let's get out of here." Eren said. I nodded and followed him outside, Alfred on our heels.

"Oren is in the Chantry. He'll be happy to see you again." I said. Once we entered the courtyard though, the chasind man was screaming about darkspawn and pointed at Eren.

"There is one of their minions in front of us now!" The man shouted and I face palmed.

"I don't know what you're talking about but it's best if you keep your voice down."

"I saw the darkness like a plague descend on my people. You will not silence me!"

"You're just like a barking mabari with no bite! Are you that much of a coward to only scream about the darkspawn and not fight them?" Eren said. The man paused for a minute.

"I have shamed my ancestors. I will go." Eren shook his head and we both went into the Chantry.

"Oren?" I said. Oren saw me and then saw Eren. His face lit up in an instant.

"Uncle!" Oren shouted. Eren laughed and twirled him in the air. "Uncle did you beat the bad men?"

"Yes I did Oren."

"Where's papa?" Eren stopped and put Oren down.

"Papa told me that he was going to keep on fighting the bad people but told me he'd come back if you were a good boy."

"I'll be the goodest boy ever Uncle if it means my papa can come back!" Oren said with a puff of his chest. I laughed.

"You go ahead an talk to Oren. I'm going to go outside ok?" Eren nodded and allowed Oren to lead him toward the bookshelves with all the stories of the Chantry. I left the Chantry and walked around a bit before seeing Derek and Alistair near the bridge.

"So what supplies are we going to need? I picked up a few things while I'm here but anything you need, we better get it and fast." I said.

"Calm down missy, you're too high strung." Derek said, slapping me on my back. It hurt through the armor.

"You know she is right. We're here. Get a few things and we'll be off our way prancing through darkspawn fields." Alistair said.

"Prancing and stabbing, that's the way to go." I said.

"Those are some interesting daggers there." Derek said, taking one out.

"Got them customized. One for stabbing, the other for punching them in the face and knocking their teeth out. Or crushing their nose, breaking their jaw, punching them in their dragon. You know?" I said. Alistair laughed weakly and Derek gave them a good eye.

"Very nice, if you want to dance around the enemy. If you ask me, a big hammer has it's uses as well." Derek said, taking out his maul. The thing was bigger than my head and, with the handle, was as tall as Derek.

"Damn, now that is a big hammer.I'm too dainty for that thing. I might faint just holding your big hammer." I said. Ah yes, perverted jokes. Derek laughed and slapped my back again. I groaned and Alistair was left red face.

"So," I said rubbing my back. "Where is everyone else?"

"Talen went with Morrigan and Leliana to free the Qunari they have in the cage. Eren should still be in the Chantry, right?" Alistair said.

"Yeah, he's in there with his nephew."

"We might as well go see if the priss was successful in getting the Qunari out." Derek said. All three of us went to the cage and Leliana was picking the lock on the cage. I wondered how did Talen convince Leliana to do that. Sten pledged himself to Talen and we got him in the group. I went up to him and noticed that he still had my food with him.

"I'm guessing that you didn't eat what I gave you?"

"I accepted it, but no. I will start eating now that they have accepted me."

"Good and make sure to pace yourself on the food. I don't want you getting an upset stomach from not eating for a long time, then eating."

"Thank you for your concern."

"No problem Sten."

We all gathered in front of the inn. Leliana was already suit up with some leather armor than they managed to take from the highwaymen. Derek had already killed the bandits and got their armor for Sten.

We were all there, Alistair, Leliana, Morrigan, Talen, Derek, Sten, and I. All that was missing was Eren.

"You should probably get Eren so we can get underway to Redcliffe." Alistair said.

"That's not necessary." Eren said, Oren right next to him. "Nia, since you said Oren will be traveling with us, you will protect him." I nodded and Oren went to my side.

"Alright, we got all what we've came here to do. Let's go." Derek said. We went toward the path and found the people that wanted the bounty. I felt bad for them, but they did attack us first. I kept Oren away from the fighting while everyone else went ahead and fought. After doing that, the GWs sensed some darkspawn ahead of us. Morrigan and Leliana found from a distance as the 4 GWs went ahead and killed them. We saved Bodahn and his son.

"Timely arrival my friends. Thank the men will you Sandal?"

"Thank you."

"I'm guessing that you all are not ordinary travelers."

"That's putting it lightly." Talen said.

"You are not traveling out of this fine town are you?" Bodahn asked.

"I doubt you'd want to travel with Grey Wardens, friend." Derek said.

"Oh Grey Wardens? That explains many things. I'm sorry, your path might have a bit more excitement that I'm used to but thank you for rescuing me and my boy."

"Thank you."

"Now let's get this clean up shall we?"

-/-

"So after Redcliffe, where are you planning to go?" I asked Eren. We put a bit of distance away from Lothering, traveling the road that would lead us to the Circle or Redcliffe.

"Circle of Magi. Got a few things I need to pick up." Talen said. Everyone was quiet after that. No one was close with anyone besides me and Eren. Not only that, Derek, Talen, and Alistair just lost a lot of people. I could understand it. Even Alfred was on edge even after seeing I was well. I made sure to give him a few scratches behind the ear. Leliana started to sing a song. It made things less tense.

"So missy, you never did tell how you got involved with him." Derek said, pointing at Eren.

"Long story short? He made his mom mad and I became a glorified nanny." I said.

"Nanny?" Talen said.

"Not a nanny. Bodyguard." Eren said, shoving me.

"Uh huh. Keep telling yourself that." Derek laughed. I like Derek. He knows when to diffuse a tense situation.

"Hey are we sure, sure about going to Redcliffe? If we go the Circle, I'm sure they'll watch Oren." Talen said. I raised an eyebrow as well as Eren, who gave me a look.

"Is there something in the Circle that you need that badly?" Alistair said.

"Missing that lady friend of yours?" Derek said.

"Shut it! Look can't we just pass by? It'll only take another day to travel there. I'll get in the boat, go the circle and get out. Easy stuff." Talen said. Huh. Things aren't exactly the same as in game. I have to make sure to keep these differences in mind.

"All I want is Oren to stay safe. Another day of traveling is too dangerous." Eren said.

"We can always split up." Alistair said.

"No. We stay together." Eren said.

"Either we go to the circle, or I go alone. Your choice." Talen said. It actually made the group stop.

"We shouldn't be stopping. We must make a decision now." Sten said. Eren growled.

"Fine. But you better get your ass out of that Circle as quickly as you can." Eren said and moved ahead of the group. I saw Morrigan trail after him and I scowled. I know what she's going to be doing later in game. I didn't want Eren to get too hurt getting involved with her, if he did.

-/-

We made camp and, sure enough, Bodahn was there. Talen was talking to him to see if we can get a few enchantments on our weapons. I was over the fire, doing what I could to make some food for everyone. Leliana was right beside me, humming a little song. Morrigan as always, in her own little camp.

"Man, look at them all. Hopefully we'll be able to feed everyone." I mumbled, checking the soup. I might not be too much of a cook, but I make a mean soup.

"Oh don't worry. We can always go hunting." Leliana said.

"I'm not that good with a bow. I can sneak around pretty good but that's all." I said. I took off the pot and let it cool. Alistair came by.

"Ooh! That doesn't smell half bad." Alistair said, getting a spoon. I grabbed it from him and hit his hand. "Ow! What was that for?"

"No early bites. We got a party of 9 to feed." I said.

"8. Oren is already sleeping." Eren said, coming over from his tent and filling the bowls. He passed it to everyone but I stopped him giving one to Sten. I made a bowl without meat and went up to give to him.

"Eating meat after starving for too long would likely kill you. So sorry, no meat chunks." I said, giving him the bowl. "Make sure to also keep hydrated."

"You need not fuss over me. I am fit enough to fight." Sten said.

"Just looking out for you. Someone has to." I said.

"Thank you for your concern." Sten said. I sat down and Eren was already at his second bowl as was Talen and Derek.

"Well so much for the stew." I said, looking at the empty pot. Eren at least saved me some.

"Ooh cheese!"

9:30 Kingsway 29th

The fade seemed slightly different. It wasn't locations from back home. They were locations here in Ferelden. I did just travel from Highever all the way down to Lothering so that means the fade was just showing me what I knew. The path was laid for me like always and Halo was right on my shoulder. I got my weapons on me just in case. I walked around again and everything looked extremely familiar.

"Oh this is interesting." I whipped around. Sure enough Morrigan was right behind me.

"Jesus Christ Morrigan, you freaking scared me!" I said with my hand over my heart. She really did. I never found anyone here.

"How in the world are you here?" Talen was right there with us. I scratched my head a bit when I suddenly realized that something was missing. I looked at my shoulders and Halo wasn't with me.

"You know I've wondered about that for the past couple of years. Now? I don't really care so much." I said, shrugging my shoulders. Now where was Halo?

"Are you a mage?" Talen said, creeping closer to me. I gave him a look.

"Ah you found me out! I just carry daggers and wear armor for the fun of it." I said, rolling my eyes. Morrigan chuckled and Talen scowled.

"Tis a wonder on how you are able to come to the fade." Morrigan said.

"Hey if you can figure it out, I'm all ears. I'm surprised I found you two here. All this fade walking and I've never met anyone." Well besides my friend Halo. "Speaking of which, you didn't happen to see something on my shoulder when you came, did you?"

"I cannot say that I did. You were alone when I saw you." Morrigan said. Huh, that was strange. Maybe it was people shy.

"This can't be possible. There's no way you can be in the fade and not be a mage at the same time." Talen said. For an elf he's a-wait that was pretty usual for them.

"Don't they say that everyone goes to the fade when they're sleeping anyway? Ever heard of lucid dreaming?" I said. Then I woke up in my tent. I rubbed my eyes and wrote this down fairly quickly. Oren was right next to me. I heard Alistair talking to someone. He was the last one to take the last watch so it should be close to morning. I took a peek out of my tent. Eren was already awake. It was still dark out.

"Oh you're awake?" Alistair said as I get out.

"Actually I'm still asleep. I think this is the part where I eat everyone's food and then blame it on Alfred." I said. Oh my gosh it's been so long since I could joke around. Alistair chuckled and Eren stared out into the fire. This was beginning to worry me. Eren was always the one with the cocky smile and rough personality. He didn't brood. I go over to sit next to him. I put my hand on his shoulder.

"Hey, you ok?"

"No." He left it at that and I didn't want to ask. If Eren wanted to confide in me, he would eventually. Alfred woke up and nuzzled me. I went to give him scratching while Alistair started to wake everyone up. We packed up everything. Talen and Morrigan kept giving me some looks but I didn't really care. It would take us at least 3 days to get to the Circle on foot.

Bodahn was at the tail of our group. Oren was sitting on his cart eating some bread and tough jerky. Oren kept asking all sorts of questions and Bodahn was kind enough to answer them. I was at the tail along with them.

On our way to the Circle I noticed a few signs. I looked at one and read it. 'Danger: Traps are meant for wolves.'

"Hold on." I said and went to the front of the group. If this was what I think it was...Yep, I swept the floor lightly with my foot and lo a trap.

"Good eye." Leliana said to me. She was going to start on disabling them, until we heard a howl. Alfred started to growl and everyone got into their positions. Wolves jumped from the boulders over head. The good thing was that Bodahn was far away so the wolves only concentrated on us. I was pounced on by one of them. I hit the ground hard. It was trying to bite into my throat but I held it off. Then a slice from a greatsword from Sten and it jumped off. I grabbed my dagger and as it lunged towards me, I clocked it. I heard a great yelp before a lighting spell hit it.

Then I looked over and every wolf is dead. A few scratches and bites but Talen healed most of them. Leliana and I worked a path through the traps so that no one would set them off. Derek did, twice, anyway.

9:30 Kingsway 30th

I hummed nonsensically while doing what I could to make food around here. That part where Grey Wardens have a huge appetite? Yeah it was frigging true. So glad I learned how to cook. Wolf stew, yummy. The Circle Tower was off in the distance, looming over us. Another day and we'd be there.

"Are you going to be in the fade tonight?" Talen said.

"I don't know. I don't go into the fade every night, just every once in a while. Why?" Talen just looked at me.

"You're breaking the rules. Only mages can remembered their time in the fade. You're not a mage." No, really?

"Rules are made to be broken. Hey! No tasting, that's my job. Unless you want to cook." He gave me a sidelong glance."Here, make yourself useful and pass this around."

"You have a talent for this. I've never known anyone that can just make good soup out of anything." Alistair said, relishing his dish. I knew that look. I've had that look eating good food.

"Well, I was serving in the kitchens for a bit. I know a little bit of everything. Cooking, sewing, cleaning, shining, embroidering, dancing. I had a lot of free time." And I was trained in almost everything in order to help Oriana. The rest I did just because I was so bored.

"Oh you can repair clothes? Because my shirt has a couple of holes in them..." I just rolled my eyes. He took it out of his pack and it was more holes than shirt.

"Really? You want me to fix this?" I asked him.

"Yes. I just can't go to sleep at night without my favorite shirt." Alistair joked.

"Look I'm no miracle worker. Dump this and get a new shirt."

"Alright, how about these pants?" Now these were fixable.

"What were your duties when you were working with Eren?" Leliana said.

"Well, I wasn't actually working with Eren when I was at Castle Highever at first. I was working under...his sister in law..."

If only I killed the archer then he wouldn't have shot Oriana. If only I paid attention then I could have done something. Leliana put a comforting hand on my shoulder. No time to grieve.

"I was her handmaiden, then I got switched to him when an incident occurred." One hole fixed, on to the next. "Nothing really big happened until Eren got me. That's when he turned evil and decided that I should be his bodyguard. 2 years of straight training and now you have me. There all fixed." I handed him his pants and he smiled like a big puppy.

"And what was that incident that caused you to switch?" Alistair said. I know, Eren knows but I don't know if he wanted them to know.

"Don't tell them." Eren said.

"Oh come on. We're going to be traveling everywhere together. Might as well learn our deepest, darkest secrets." Alistair said.

"Huh. You have secrets?" Talen said, scarfing down his second sandwich.

"Oh you know me. Big, dark and brooding. It's so hard to keep it up."

"I think the brooding part should go to him." Derek said, punching Eren's knee. I rolled my eyes at their banter. They kept picking on Eren, but it seemed to be a good distraction from whatever he was thinking. After giving some good scratching for Alfred for being such a good boy, I decided to write all of this down and sleep.

9:30 Harvestmere 1st

We reached the Tower. Talen was surprised to find a Templar working the dock instead of the usual ferryman. He was arguing with him, trying to get us over to the Circle.

"What do you think happened?" Leliana said. We were sitting near the shore, Talen was almost screaming at the guy at this point.

"Not sure. Not anything good." I couldn't tell her that the Tower were being overtaken by abominations. The Templar nearly got out his sword before I saw Derek pushing Talen away. He was speaking to the Templar now and Talen was fuming. The Tower was pretty impressive. I've been around tall buildings before and this was a heavy contender for a skyscraper. It was situated on a small island in the middle of Lake Calenhad. It had ample space around and no walls surrounding it. No reason to considering it was in the middle of the lake.

Sten was talking to a scrawny little man about something. Probably trying to find out what happened to his sword. Derek came over to the group. We were allowed in.

-/-

It's easier to kill abominations than people. We're resting right now in Irving's study. As soon as we crossed the lake into the tower, Talen burst open the double doors. Greagoir was there with a few Templars around him.

"You. What are you doing here?" He asked.

"What happened? Why are the Templars barring the door?" Talen asked.

"The tower is no long safe. Abominations and demons stalk the halls. The mages are indisposed and the Templars doing everything they can to keep them from getting out." Greagoir explained.

"There has to still be some that are still alive! You can't just let everyone in there die!" Talen shouted.

"Enough! It doesn't matter. We have already sent word to Denerim for the Rite of Annulment." Talen went 3 shades whiter.

"This is why we cut off the tongues of mages of Par Vollen." Sten mumbled.

"You can't do that! I won't let you kill everyone in there! There has to be people still alive. You have to let me in!" Talen said.

"I assure you that will mostly find death in those halls." Greagoir said. I knew that there are people still in there. I'm with Talen.

"Let me go in. If I find anyone there, then you have to stop the rite." Talen said.

"Only if you find First Enchanter Irving. I will accept the word of no one else."

"Deal." Talen said. He looked toward us. Probably wondering if we were all going to go, or just a group of us. Talen seemed so young standing there, his face pleading for help.

"I will go with you." Eren said and Alfred barked.

"Ditto."

"As am I." Leliana said.

"Count me in." Alistair said.

"Can't get rid of me that easy kid." Derek said. Sten nodded. Everyone gave a side glance to Morrigan.

"Very well. Let's clean up the mage's prison." Eren had a talk with one of the Templar's traders to keep an eye on Oren for us. Then they opened the gates, and we all walked through. Talen looked horrified to find the people he grew up with on the floor, blood covering them. These weren't whole bodies either. Most were ripped through shreds. Blood covered the walls and beds. Armor scattered everywhere. Talen stood in front of a bunk bed.

"This...this was my bed..."

We didn't go into the apprentices rooms. We saw the door closed toward the practice rooms and we opened it. Wynne was there, doing a cold spell to kill the rage demon that was able to go through the barrier. There were only a handful of children and other apprentices in the room.

"Wynne!" Talen ran over. "Greagoir has barred the doors, is it true? Has demons taken over?"

"Talen? Yes. I'm surprised you came here Talen. You were so eager to leave the circle." Wynne said.

"I had to come back. What happened?"

"We had something of an uprising on our hand led by Uldred. He was a changed man since the loss at Ostagar and tried to take over the circle. It didn't go quite the way he planned. I did not rest on my laurels however. Petra and the other apprentices helped me save as many as we could." Wynne explained.

"At this point it doesn't matter if you saved them or not. Greagoir has already sent out for the Rite of Annulment." Talen said.

"Then he thinks we are all dead."

"But I made a deal with him. He'll call off the Rite if we find Irving." Talen said.

"Then we have our goal. Come now Talen. We must not waste time, we have to save the Circle and Irving." Morrigan scoffed. I knew what was going to happen next.

"Why should we even save them? They allow themselves to be collared and led like sheep. Why should we even waste time helping mages that have become no more than slaves to the Chantry?"

"If Flemeth didn't find you, you probably would have ended up here." Eren said. Morrigan thought about it.

"Mother always said that things happened because they were meant to be. I always wondered this. Hmph, do what you must." I rolled my eyes. I seemed to be doing that a lot. Wynne took down the barrier and left her apprentices with the children. Before we went through, I noticed Morrigan stopping Talen. They were speaking quietly. I could only assume that she was wondering about the grimoire.

We went through the door leading to the practice rooms and I took a big breath. We met our first abominations in the practice floors. They were grey, veiny, with various parts of their body bulging out. They didn't look human at all. I won't lie, I peed myself a bit when I saw them.

These were the monsters of nightmares. Still they were killable. Alistair, Eren, Sten and Derek were all in the front. Leliana, Morrigan, Wynne and Talen stayed in the back. Alfred and I did the hit and run tactic. As soon as the enemies were down, we both went for the kill.

There were tall bookshelves all around us. Books were on the floor, a few with pages ripped. So far we only encountered hunger and rage demons. There were a few Templar corpses on the floor. Every single time Talen saw someone that he knew, he would stop for a second and say their name. Nobody talked. There was death every where. It was hitting the party morale.

We battled the rage and hunger demons that gathered near the stairs to the second floor. The only thing that was really annoying was that the demons exploded when they died. We would all need to hit the deck as soon as we killed one. Once we were safe from that, we went up the stairs to the second floor. The clinking of armor echoed in the halls. I knew this place from playing the mage origin. This was the stockroom and, sure enough, there was Owain.

"Please refrain from going into the stockroom. It is a mess and I haven't had time to tidy up." I felt shivers going down my back. He creeped me out. There wasn't anything in his face. No emotion. No life.

"Owain? What are you still doing here?" Talen asked.

"I tried leaving but then I encountered the barrier. Finding no other way out, I returned to work."

"Owain you should have said something. I would have opened the door for you."

"The stock room is familiar. I prefer to be here. I would prefer not to die. I would prefer for the tower to go back to the way it was. Perhaps Niall will succeed and save us all."

"Enchanter Niall?"

"Yes. He came with a group of mages asking for the Litany of Adralla."

"The litany? Wynne, you thinking what I'm thinking?"

"Blood Magic. He was at the meeting with Uldred. He would know."

"Then this just got a lot more complicated. Take care of yourself Owain and, if you can, go down to the first floor. We already got it covered."

"Thank you and good bye."

We headed out of the stockroom when we heard a couple of voices. Talen did a little gasp. Three mages were in a group. When they saw us, the spells started to fling. Alistair was first up. He cleansed the area and the mages became powerless. One was taken down by Alfred. The other by Leliana's bow. The last female mage, cowered on the floor. Talen's lip was in a thin line.

"Please don't kill me."

"Adia...Why?" Talen said.

"Uldred promised us our freedom. Where we didn't have the templars watching. We could have had lives Talen."

"But Blood Magic?! Look at what it's gotten you! Look at the tower, the people! Nothing. Nothing was worth this."

"I thought out of all people you would understand. They were always watching. We had to take the first step, force a change. The magic gave us...gave me the power to fight for what I believed in."

"Keep telling yourself that if it lets you sleep. The end never justifies the means...I'm not going to kill you Adia, but I'm not going to help you." Talen said.

"But she's a blood mage!" Alistair said.

"If she does anything, I'll be one to stop her. Get out of here. I don't ever want to see you again." She thanked him and scampered out. Everyone gave Talen a moment until we went ahead.

The fighting wasn't the problem. It was the mental part that was whittling us down. Everyone is on a tight bow string now. Talen worst of all. We reached the mages quarters. More hunger demons. The bodies have started to look like they were burned to death. The weird thing was that it was cold no matter where you went. Then came the corpses. There was a zombie romance movie where they showed bonies. These were those. They had no eyes. No lips, just teeth. Their skin pulled tight. They had robes on. These were the bodies of the mages and they were being possessed.

Talen had enough. He let out a shout of rage and summoned a fireball. If I wasn't focused on the horror of the mage tower, I would have looked at the spell in awe. The bodies were caught on fire, demons exploding everywhere, undead falling over dead again. After it was all said and done, there was a complete silence. Talen hiccuped as a sob tried to come through his throat. Talen came down onto his knees, his hands grabbing at his robes. This was his home for who knows how many years and these were the people he grew up with. Now his home was a center of death and destruction.

"I feel so sorry for him." Leliana whispered to me.

"There's nothing we can do. We just have to keep going." I squeezed her shoulder. Talen got up. His eyes were red. The silence continued.

* * *

**I probably went through this chapter 4 or 5 times proofreading it. That's the thing about long chapters, more stuff to look out for.**

**Shout out to Grey Warden Dragonborn, shinedown, and Ruri7533 for following/favoriting this story! (or me the author :3 )**

**great northern one: **_No you're awesome! :D_**  
redrosemary: **_Yes he did. I have a soft spot for kids you know**?  
**_**sweetnessme: **_There will be some romance, that's as much as I'll say :3**  
**_**helenGet: **_I know right? Hard to get that dynamic down sometimes.**  
**_**ElyssaCousland: **_Thank you for noticing that error! I made sure to go back and fix it. Sorry, I was writing phonetically and in my head, there was an a xP_  
**shinedown: **_Loved your double reviews! And you are so very awesome as well!_

**Your Reviews and time are very much appreciated, just click that button below :)**


	10. Dreams are Made of These

9:30 Harvestmere 1st Continued

We were still in the mage quarters. This would have been where Talen would have moved to after his Harrowing. Most of the furniture was burned during his fireball, the crackling of the fire was the only thing I heard. The room was in disarray along with the fire. Furniture was overturned, various miscellaneous items on the floor. I can't tell you how many times I tripped over furniture.

"There is something here." Sten said. The infamous closet and the cowardly mage.

"Hey! You can come out now." Talen said, clearing his throat from his sobbing earlier.

"A-Are you s-sure?"

"Just get out or I'll blast that closet into pieces."

"Oh! Wait! Don't hurt me!" A young man came out, groaning about how his butt hurt.

"Talen? What are you doing back into the tower and wha- Oh holy Maker, look at them all. You really showed those demons their due."

"What were you doing in there Godwin?"

"Well I was minding my own business in the tower, when all of a sudden demons started to pour out from the meeting room upstairs. So I decided the best thing to do in that situation is to hide, and be really, really quiet." Talen face palmed.

"We've cleared a path down to the first floor if you want to go with the other apprentices." Wynne said.

"Oh no, I think I'll just stay in my closet for now until everything blows over. Thank you again for all your help." Talen nodded toward him and we continued on our way through the second floor.

We found three more blood mages arguing about getting money. They heard us coming and one managed to ensnare Eren. Morrigan paralyze him while Alistair, Derek, and Sten went to battle the mages. Alistair put his Templar abilities to good use and stopped their magic. Robes weren't a really good defense against a greatsword and battle hammer. Then an abomination came out to try to kill Talen. It got burned down for its trouble but Talen was in the way of the explosion and got his face singed a bit. Wynne healed after the battle was won and Eren came to and apologized.

"We need to take caution. The saarebas will seize our minds and have us fight against each other." Sten said.

"We need the litany. That's the only thing that can go against mind control." Wynne said.

"My blade will cut down anyone who loses control."

"You hear that? Try not to get mind controlled." Alistair said. We left the room and went into the stockroom. The place was a mess with two abominations and a rage demon. Morrigan did a cold spell to freeze the rage demon while Derek and Sten went toe to toe with the other two. Alfred and I went behind the enemies and I shattered the rage demon. Alfred launched himself at the abomination. One died before the other and I called Alfred just in time to avoid the blast. The other was flown across the room by Derek. Talen looked around to see if there some supplies. He even tried to open the door to the caverns where all the supplies were but they were locked.

"Tch, there's nothing here, let's keep going."

"It's going to take a long time if we keep searching room to room." Derek said.

"Well we're going to do it just in case we find anyone else." Talen said.

We got out of the stockroom and found the Chantry. Talen saw some of the bodies of the Templars and stopped. His eyes lingered where Jowan and Lily asked him for his help to free Jowan. Talen gave out a long sigh.

"Check around to see if we can find something in here." Talen said. Eren and I just looked at each other and shrugged. There was only books scattered about the room, pews overthrown, the statue of Andraste on the floor.

"Hm? Talen there's a bottle on the ground near the statue of Andraste." Alistair said. Talen came over and inspected it.

"Weird, it's black. Let's see..." Talen said, grabbing the vial but it broke. The room suddenly grew extremely cold. I breathed out and I was able to see my breath.

"Oh that's not good." I said. Electricity crackled from the vial and out came a cold orb of energy. Once the energy dissipated, there was a Revenant standing right in front of us.

"Oh sod. Revenant!" Talen said as the Revenant pulled him toward it. We all got out our weapons and Morrigan tried to hit it with a freezing spell, but the Revenant just shook it off. It was about to stab downward on Talen when Alistair, who was closest, dragged him away. The Revenant did a telekinetic pull and dragged Derek over instead. Derek was on the ground as the Revenant slashed downward, but its sword got caught with Sten's sword. Morrigan kept on trying to hit it with freezing spell, but with no change. Alfred went over and tried to bite at the Revenant but it soon threw Sten off and punched Alfred in his muzzle. Eren got mad at that and charged him with his shield. He was able to move the Revenant a few inches on the ground. Alistair came by to help but they were both pushed out of the way by the Revenant. I tried to get closer, only to feel fear. I was paralyzed with fear as I felt like a mouse going against a tiger. I started to shake uncontrollably. The Revenant was throwing all our warriors away from us when it noticed me right behind it.

"Nia!" Eren shouted but I couldn't move. The Revenant with its plate armor and wide sword was coming toward me. It raised it's sword above me and I fell on my knees from the fear. Then I saw an arrow poking out of it's arm. Leliana got it again in the back of the neck. Eren charged again with his shield and got the Revenant's attention away from me. Talen got up and started to summon another fireball.

"Out of the way!" Talen shouted. Alistair and Eren got out of the way as the fireball got to the Revenant, but it only pushed him farther away. Sten and Derek went toward it, hitting it with their double handed weapons while it was distracted. Leliana found her way towards me and pulled me out of the fight. I couldn't stand up to it at all. Alfred was in front of Morrigan and Wynne. Wynne was making sure that everyone wasn't crumbling away from the powerful swings of the Revenant. Derek, Sten, Eren, and Alistair were all ganging up on him. Talen went over to our side and helped with healing alongside Wynne. Morrigan's spells weren't working since she was more entropy and cold spells which didn't work on the Revenant.

The Revenant did another powerful swing and everyone was on the ground. Leliana took this chance and started to hit it with numerous arrows but, even though the arrows pierced it's neck, it didn't do nothing but focus on us. The Revenant took one look at me on the floor and did it's pull again. I was pulled right underneath it again, but this time I had enough. I pushed away the fear and grabbed my daggers. I dodged it's downward stab and started to pummel against it's armor. That's all I did until the armor dented enough where there was an opening. It flinged me across the room into the mages. Alistair then got up and plunged his sword right where I made the opening. His sword went right through the Revenant. Alistair pulled out his sword and clocked the Revenant on it's face and slashed at it's neck. The Revenant did it's dramatic fall and laid dead on the floor. I let out a breath I didn't know I had, my heart beating like crazy in my chest, as I got up from the others I crashed into.

"You just had to touch the black vial." I said.

"I thought it was a potion! How was I supposed to know it was a Revenant?" Talen shouted.

"To think we had something that dangerous, and in the Chantry no less." Wynne said.

"Someone had an ironic sense of humor." Eren said. "Are you ok?" Eren said, coming toward me.

"Yeah, just, I'm sorry that I froze. I don't know why."

"Revenants can give out a fearsome aura that affects those with weak minds." Morrigan said, glancing toward me. I rubbed my face sheepishly.

"Well that explains a few things." Eren said and I shoved him.

"We should keep going and no more touching those black vials." Derek said.

I finally got everything written down. Irving's study was like a resting period for us. Wynne and Talen were looking around to see if there was something of use down here. Talen got the black grimoire and sneaked it into his pack.

"Hopefully we can get out of here soon. This tower is too cold." Derek said, rubbing his hands.

"We're not going to find anything valuable here. Let's get going." Talen said.

-/-

The higher we got, the colder it cold. Stone does not retain heat. The mess hall was almost destroyed. Everything was overturned with various corpses on the ground. As we entered, the corpses came to life. We were all scattered and they took that to their advantage, coming closer to our mage group more than anyone else. One singled me out and I had a close brush when it tripped me. As soon as I went down, it launched itself at me. It's teeth tried to bite at anything that was exposed. Did I already thank Eren on giving me the medium armor? I'd like to say thank you again. I kept it at bay, grabbing at it's head, but it's supernatural strength was gaining on me. Then Alfred came and tackled it, severing its head from the body. There really was only one way to kill these and that's through decapitation. We go through the fade through our dreams so the demons possess us through our minds. If we take off the head, there was no link anymore.

While we were busy with the corpses, an arcane horror came upon us from the other room. I sprinted toward it, keeping myself low. I launched myself at it and stabbed my daggers deep into it, dragging it to the ground. I began wailing on it, getting the attention of a rage demon that was right behind it.

I couldn't jump away fast enough when the rage demon seared me with its flames. Wynne's timely healing made sure that there was no permanent damage. Morrigan and Derek, done killing the corpses, came to my aid. A quick ice spell and Derek's hammer tore it apart. Then a legion of hunger demons came from the next room. They were alerted from the fighting with the rage demon I kept myself low, trying to stab at the legs or trip them. One grabbed me from behind and threw me into Eren and Sten. I felt my spine crack in the wrong way. My lower back felt extremely stiff. Derek got his leg stuck in the trap leading to the next room, Sten maneuvered his way around him, with Alistair and Eren right behind him. After they took down all the hunger demons we all took a well deserved break. I knew I wouldn't be able to keep going until my lower back cracked again.

"Sten, can you help me?"

"What do you need?"

"I need you to lift and squeeze me." I gave him the run down. I was going to cross my shoulders while he grabbed me from the front and squeezed until he heard a crack. Sten agreed. I crossed my arms and he did it. I felt something shift back.

"Oh! Ah much better. Thank you Sten. Remind me to bake you some cookies one day."

"That would be appreciated." Talen was being silent again as we found all the bodies piled on top of each other in a corner of the room. There was nothing I could do for him. Wynne came toward him and put a hand on Talen's shoulder, but he pushed her away.

"This must stop..." Wynne said softly.

"Let's keep going." Talen said. We saw another hallway full of closed doors. We opened the first one and possessed Templars started to come toward us. There were only two but with that plate armor, it was extremely hard to get to them.

"Try to keep them alive!" Wynne shouted.

"That's going to be really hard!" Derek shouted, fighting against one. I tried going to help but Derek pushed a Templar right toward me and he rammed me. Not having a helmet on, it hit me dead on. I saw stars for a second before, Derek used a swing against the Templar's head and he went down. Talen went to the Templars and checked their pulse. Both were still alive.

"Wynne how are you feeling?" Talen asked.

"I am a bit weary but fine."

"Then I won't ask you to heal them." Talen said, green energy coming from his hands into the Templars.

"If they wake up again I won't hesitate to kill them." Derek said.

"Don't worry they won't. Morrigan, put them to sleep. Make sure they stay asleep." Talen said.

"Fine." Morrigan said. A yellowish energy came from her hands that went toward the two Templars. "There. Let us continue."

"Are you going to do this with every Templar?" Eren asked.

"If I have to. I don't want anyone else to die...even if they are Templars." Talen said.

"I'm glad you think that way." Alistair said. Alfred barked in agreement.

"Come on let's go see who or what was controlling these Templars." Talen said. We went into the next room but we didn't find anything besides a few torn down cabinets.

"There isn't anything here." Eren said. Talen motioned us to go to the next room. That's when we hit a big bump when five Templars, FIVE, came toward us to kill us with a Desire demon right behind him.

"Jesus Christ!" I shouted as the Templars came as one moving force to try to kill us all. I heard the Desire demon shout at all of them to listen to her.

"Kill the demon! It's the reason why they're like this!" Talen shouted, trying to make sure he wasn't going to be impaled by one of the Templars. Leliana and Alfred made sure that the Templars didn't get close the Morrigan, Wynne, and Talen. Derek, Alistair, Sten, and Eren had their work cut out for them, trying to fight without killing them. I made my body small and went inside the room. The Desire demon was right in front of me. The demon had scaly skin instead of it being smooth. It's hands and feet becoming more armor like than skin with claws that were extremely long. Sure it had boobs and an almost viewable lower part, but there was nothing desirable about this demon. It was floating from the ground so I did my previous tactic and tried launching myself toward it. It did a cone of cold which I barely avoided. I ran circles around it, a pair of armored feet coming toward me. I knew that a Templar came away from the rest of the group to protect it. I rolled underneath it and stabbed at a calf. The demon gave a shout of pain as the Templar came running toward me. I did a last minute run right behind the Desire demon and the Templar tackled the demon instead of me.

The Templar got up from the demon and it started to float again but I took the initiative and finally launched myself right at it. Both of my daggers did massive damage as they sunk in the chest of the demon. The Templar started to fumble as it's control started to wane. The demon floated around, trying to get at me with it's claws. I took out one dagger and stabbed upward from it's chin. It went through it's head and I went tumbling down. All the Templars that were still fighting started to walk around as if they were drunk.

"Now Morrigan!" Talen shouted. Morrigan did an area wide sleeping spell and put them all on the ground. Talen went to each and every single one while I got out my daggers from the demon. Strangely enough, they came out clean with no blood. Unfortunately with all of them fighting us, Derek and Sten weren't able to hold back their blows. One of them died.

"If demons are able to pass through with their bodies, there must be a rift in the fade." Wynne said.

"Someone is behind this. If Uldred can bring out Desire demons, then more demons can also be here, not just Desire demons." Talen said.

"Don't tell me that we're going to fight Pride demons are we?" Alistair said.

"Heh! If we are it would make one sodding story." Derek said.

"Let's keep moving." Eren said. We came at the end of the main hall and we only found more furniture that was ruined.

"Sod out of luck. We might as well open the door leading to the middle." Derek said. We went down the hall again and found the last door. Alistair put his hand on the handle and Talen nodded. As soon as he opened it we saw the hunger abomination alongside some corpses trying to turn tranquil into more abominations. I evaded the corpses and, with Alfred, tackled the abomination that was focusing on the Tranquil. As soon as we hit the ground, I started to wreck it with my knuckles. It started to ooze this grey liquid but Alfred didn't care as it started to maul the abomination into pieces. I took a look toward the Tranquil and the glowing circles underneath them started to fade. The demon took that to his advantage and threw me off. It didn't matter since Derek took his hammer and squished the demon's ribcage. It let out a death gurgle and the Tranquil were saved.

"All of you, go down to the first level. We're cleared it of demons." Talen said.

"Of course. Thank you for saving us. That was an experience that was horrible." The Tranquil said in their monotone voice. They all started to walk away and we noticed the fleshy parts of the wall. It squirmed underneath us that was wrong on so many levels.

"Are the walls moving?" Alistair asked.

"Tis best not to think about it." We took another breather before going up the stairs. The walls are disgusting.

-/-

Talen is trying to save the possessed Templar that wanted to have a family. It gives me time to write some more.

We went up the stairs to find the small portion of the room with several burned bodies. It was a while ago that they were burned. Talen's fist clenched when he saw all of them.

"That is alarming." Sten said.

"Let's keep going Talen." Leliana said, putting her hand on his shoulder. Talen nodded. We found the possessed Templar who just wanted to have a family. Talen couldn't control himself any longer and lashed out. The Desire demon sent her Templar toward us. Talen used his small frame to by pass him and shot out a cone of flame at the Desire demon. It's skin started to bubble as the Demon floated away. Eren charged at the Templar to keep him off Talen. Talen growled as he chased the Demon. Alfred tried knocked it down, but it froze Alfred. Sten went ahead and started to swipe at it, but it's floating was causing us problems. We needed to ground it.

"Morrigan, freeze it!" I said. She timed it right and got the demon. Talen growled as he started to charge his fireball skill.

"Talen watch out!" Alistair shouted as the Templar escaped from them and jumped in front of the Desire demon but it was too late. Talen unleashed his fury. The Demon melted but the Templar started to cook in his own armor. Talen looked with horror as the Templar, that was finally out of the mind control, screamed in utter agony. Talen gasped as he tried to conjure up an ice spell. It was weak but it was enough to get rid of the flames. The Templar fell to the floor, the smell of charred flesh filling up the room. Talen tried to put in healing energy after healing energy. I looked at him with sympathy.

"Sod it all!" Talen shouted as he hit the ground. The Templar was gone. Talen put a hand to his mouth, the tears coming down again. Wynne came to him and put a hand to his back.

"We must go on Talen."

"I won't forgive them. I won't forgive whoever did this. They're going to die." Talen harshly whispered. "Let's go!" He was going to the room in the middle. I knew what was lurking beyond that. I did a quick prayer. I hope I'm able to fight it. God give me strength.

-/-

I was watching The Lorax for the umpteenth time that day. I was relaxing on the bed out in the living room. It was my weekend finally! Yes! I was tossing and turning all night for some odd reason. I felt so tired. I needed to sleep again. My son and daughter were watching the movie intently. She was swaying side to side. She could never sit still.

Still the movie was ok. What time was it? I felt a bit hungry.

I caught a whiff of someone that just did potty. Oh smelly time. I go to the box that had the diapers and got one in my hand. Of course Ace would just scatter about, trying to make me catch him. I grabbed him by the collar and put him on the bed. He gurgled and giggled at the same time. He was starting to look like his dad.

I look at the clock but the time was blurred. Huh, maybe I didn't have my contacts on.

I got the wipeys and I cleaned his rump. Yeah, fresh diaper. He goes over and does his craziness as usual. I just shake my head and sit down to get my laptop. Huh, I still got a little pudge. That's weird, wasn't it flatter?

I got distracted by watching my daughter do a military crawl on the ground. There she goes again. She was getting stronger everyday. Still it was so funny that she crawls more with her arms than with her legs. Ace was giving me those hungry sounds. Almost 2 years old and he still wasn't speaking that much. Hmm, shouldn't he be older now?

I got up and went to go peel him a banana and I look at the clock again. Blurred out. Why did I keep looking at the time? I remember that there was something I had to do. Something important. I hear the front door open and in walks my husband.

"Baby." I said and gave him a quick smooch.

"How are you doing? How were the babies?" He said, setting down his lunch bag.

"Pretty good. They were well behaved all day. Aren't you supposed to be at work?" I said. I looked at the clock again. I started to feel anxious. Time, what was the time?

"Got off early. Hey you wanna call your mom? See if she can take care of the juicies so we can go out?"

"...My mom? But she lives so far away...and I think..." There was something I had to do. There was something important I had to do. I couldn't stay here but why? That's when I heard that small voice that always told me about trouble.

Come.

Ah, it happened. This is a dream. This wasn't my house. This wasn't my husband and those weren't my babies but it felt so right. I have waited for three years waiting for this but it still wasn't time. I go over to my babies and gave them both a kiss. I went to my husband and hugged him. He hugged me back and I swore I smelled him.

"I have to go babe." I go over to the front door. I didn't have my pajama pants on anymore. Instead I was wearing my armor. My body changed to what I knew I had and my daggers were on my belt. He gave me a questioning look. I didn't want to go. I wanted to stay but I knew that this was a dream.

"Oh ok. Don't be long ok? I love you."

"...I love you too." I go out the front door and as soon as I do, I'm met with Halo. It seemed relieved to see me. It kept going around in circles, checking me. It wanted to know if I'm hurt.

"I'm fine, don't worry." I said as I held my hands out and it snuggled right in the middle. I wanted to look back but there was really no point to it. So the usual path wasn't laid out before me. No it was the street, my home neighborhood. I saw my van and my husband's truck. I didn't know where to go from here, but I couldn't stay here. I followed the street down when I saw the pedestal. Just like in the game. I touched it and the ground glowed. The vision of my home faded and the world turned black with only the pedestal in front of me. The pedestal had various symbols on it. Not as many as the ones in the game.

I just went ahead and touched one. It was like when I first came through the world. I was falling then I stopped. It was a Chantry. There were a couple of lay sisters around. They nodded at me, giving me some hellos, and Halo stayed really close. I heard someone praying and recognized it. Leliana was kneeling in front of the statue of Andraste with a Revered Mother next to her.

"Leliana!" I said, coming towards her. She stood up and frowned. Oh right, in her vision she didn't recognized anyone.

"Oh hello. Do I know you?" She said.

"Please don't stop her from reciting her prayers." The revered mother said. I saw a demon for a fraction of a second. "It keeps her calm and helps the people in the world."

"Helps the people? Prayers can only do so much. Sometimes you just need to get out there and do something. Remember Leliana? Faith can only do so much." I argued. Halo right behind me.

"I do not know what you're talking about. Please leave, I must continue the chant." Leliana said.

"Leliana this isn't you. You don't belong here and you know that. You're not one to stay here while people are suffering out there!" I said.

"She said to leave!" The revered mother shouted. The mask was fading.

"Revered Mother?" Leliana saw it as well.

"She's not the Revered Mother and this isn't the Chantry. This is the fade remember? The Circle Tower? Demons? The sloth demon that put us all to sleep? She's trying to keep you here, fight it!" I said.

"Enough! You will leave her to her meditation!" She snarled. Yes the mother snarled.

"Holy Maker!" And all hell broke loose. The lay sisters came and the Revered Mother launched themselves at me. I rolled out of there. Leliana had her bow on her but I saw her hesitation. I punched one in their face and their skin sickeningly fell off on the ground. The demon stared at me, half of it's face torn off. Holy Jesus Christ help me. Then a woosh of an arrow went through it's head. Their faces were gone. Instead, Demons replaced them.

They started towards Leliana. I stabbed one with both of my daggers and it wooshed out of existance. I cut a calf here, got an ankle there. Once they were on the ground, Leliana shot them with her arrows. The Revered Mother jumped on my back, clawing at me. I jumped and slammed her into the ground. Another arrow got the mark and soon we were the only ones left.

The Chantry was gone. The world faded and it turned into the blurred reality of the fade. I had to catch my breath a little. I felt sick, so I promptly threw up. Can you throw up in the fade? Yes. Yes you can.

"Holy Maker! The Revered Mother...she was...a demon!" Leliana said. I wiped my mouth.

"Yep, seems like it. You remember everything?" I wished for some water, got some water, rinse and spat. Repeat.

"I...I remember the tower. The Sloth demon putting us all to sleep...all of this is a dream?" Ah mouth is clean.

"Yeah. I'm glad you're among the living Leliana. Come on. Now that we got you out of your dream, this is probably going to implode on itself."

"Im-what? Wait, where are you going?" Leliana said before both of us exploded in purplely white light. I felt woozy for a second and found myself in front of the pedestal again. One of the areas that were shining was gone. That must have been Leliana's dream. So that meant I had to go into every single one? This was going to be a long day.

I just chose another dream randomly. I felt dizzy. I stumbled but then I felt someone help me stand. Alistair looked at me with an amused glance.

"Nia? I was just thinking about you! How much of a coincidence is that?" Alistair said.

"And who is this Alistair?" At first I thought it was going to be Goldanna like in the game, but instead I found myself staring into a dead man. Duncan.

"Oh you've already met?" Crap I must have said it outloud. "Anyway, this is Duncan and this is the Weisshaupt fortress isn't it grand?" High arches, carved stone, beautiful floor. I just looked in awe. It reminded me of the churches back in Mexico, the old ones decked in gold and surrounded by paintings.

"Wow." For a dream, this was pretty cool.

"I'm glad you like it Alistair." Duncan said, putting his hand on his shoulder. He looked like a proud father. Alistair never looked so happy. "Now will your friend stay for lunch? I hear more Grey Wardens will be coming for your promotion."

"Promotion?"

"Yes. Alistair has been made Warden Commander of all Ferelden for defeating the Archdemon." Duncan explained. I blinked my eyes and rubbed them. Ok this was totally not in the game.

"You were there! Oh don't tell me you forgot! We went in, all of us and defeated the Archdemon! Then we marched right into the Deep Roads and killed all of them. There is no more darkspawn threat!" Alistair said a bit too happy. I shook my head.

"Alistair, that didn't happen. None of that happened." I said and he looked at me confused.

"What? What are you talking about? Of course it happened. I dealt the final blow."

"Come Alistair, you'll miss your own feast."

"No. He doesn't have to."

"You're acting very strangely. Just come to the feast and we'll talk there!" Alistair said, grabbing onto my hand. Duncan was ahead of us but there was no way I was going into a lunch room full of demons. I pulled my hand away from Alistair.

"No Alistair. Just think about it. We haven't even come close to even gaining allies, let alone defeating the archdemon. And he's dead!" I said pointing to Duncan. There was the flash again on Duncan's face.

"Hey don't insult him!" Alistair shouted.

"Think about it. Really hard. How did you get here?" Alistair looked deep in thought. There was the flash again.

"It's just coming in flashes...a Tower? And a...a demon?" Alistair said, holding his head.

"Yes. That really happened. The Sloth demon put us all to sleep. Think about it some more."

"Alistair, you shouldn't keep your guests waiting." Duncan urged.

"No wait. I...I remember the Tower overtaken...by demons. We...saw one and we...fell asleep.."

"This is a dream."

"I will not let you take him!" Duncan took out his twin swords and I took out my daggers. Alistair smashed him with his shield. In Duncan's dazed state, I punched him straight in the face, then another in the throat. Alistair slashed him with his shield and I aimed downward onto Fake Duncan's head. The fortress blurred into the fade.

"Du-Duncan? I can't believe it. This was all a dream?" Alistair said. I knew that he was still pained by Duncan but there were more people to save.

"Alright. Time to keep moving." Then the sparkle started to happen but I grabbed onto Alistair before we faded away. It felt like I span around for ten minutes. The world wobbled around me and the pedestal stood before me.

"What is that?" I looked and Alistair came with me. Score! Time to continue on the other dreams.

* * *

**I had to cut this chapter on my rewrite because it became longer than 7000. The rest of the dream sequence up in the next chapter!**

**helenGet:** _Well, I really do hate to give out future information but **SPOILER**: she actually doesn't end up with anyone. Remember that she's always reminding everyone that she is married. This is me and I'm extremely loyal to my husband. I wouldn't be able to go through with someone without fearing that he might find out. I just can't so, no romance for her. There will be romance though so hold onto your_ seats!  
**shinedown: **_OHMYGOSH! This is the first time I actually inspired someone to do a story of their own! :DD When it does come out, send me a link I'd love to read through it :3_

**Your continued response always helps me write and give me inspiration, but that little button that says "Review" always makes it better :3**


	11. Ally 1

Inside the Sloth's Dream continued.

"This pedestal is what's keeping us here, I think. Give me a second and I'll choose another dream. Here take my hand."

"What?" Alistair said.

"Or shoulder, I don't care but you have to be touching me." He opted for the shoulder instead. I chose another dream. I really got sick of this feeling very fast. It was ruins this time. There were woods out in the distance and towers crumbling all over us. It looked like Ostagar. I heard a gasp from Alistair. Yes, it was definitely Ostagar. We walked in silence, the snow crunching underneath us until we found bodies. Lots of bodies. All of them mages. We saw Wynne sitting down in the middle of all of this death. She was cradling the head of a mage in her lap. His eyes were closed, dead just like everyone else that was around us.

"Wynne?" Alistair said. She looked at us, her eyes red, puffy. For once I saw the years in those eyes.

"Why are you two here? Never mind. Please leave." Her voice sounded small, weak, and hoarse.

"What is all this?"

"Death. Can you not see it? It's all around us. I tried. I tried so hard to save all of them but there was nothing I could do. And where were you? You were supposed to be there!" Wynne said, tears rolling down her eyes. Alistair stammered. I put my hand on his should and shook my head. I knelt down to Wynne's level.

"Wynne, you're not like this. You're stronger than this." She scoffed. "This isn't you. You don't wallow in self-pity."

"Your blatant disregard for the dead is repulsive. Leave me. I'll burn their bodies and scatter their ashes to the four corners of the world, before I too lay before them. To atone for my mistake in failing to protect them." Wynne said, looking at the face of the dead apprentice in her lap.

"Wynne." I said, putting my hand on her shoulder. "Listen to me. Listen to the sound of my voice." I took one of the hands that was holding the head in my own and squeezed it. "This isn't real. This is just a dream. Think. How did you get here Wynne?" I said, keeping my voice soft and soothing.

"I-I don't know...It's hard to think. There's a fog from my mind. Maybe...Maybe I need to get away from this." I nodded and helped her up. Then the mage that was on her lap got up.

"No don't leave us Wynne. Stay. Stay with us." She gasped.

"Foul demon, stay away!" The mages all started to stand up. Alistair cleansed the area. Wynne started to fling around some spells while I went on a punching spree. I counted 10 bodies. Alistair made sure that none of them could use their spells. That didn't stop them from launching themselves at us. I had three one top of me at once. They were trying to make me fall but I held on. I felt a shock as Wynne used a lightning spell to get them off me. Alistair was fighting off five at a time, two more were at Wynne's feet. I threw one off my back and got my dagger. I stabbed behind me, getting both of them on their stomach. The demons let out groans of pain as they let me go. I did a high kick and made them fall before I kept on whamming their faces until they disappeared. Four down, so far. Alistair was able to get rid of two more. Wynne brought down one with an earth spell. Three more to go. I rolled and got two on the ground. I stabbed their stomachs and throat. Alistair slashed and bashed the other two out of existence. The battle was won. Wynne let out a tired sigh.

"I can't believe it." Wynne said softly. The purple haze started but unfortunately I wasn't able to reach either in them in time. I found myself at the pedestal alone. "Oh you got to be kidding me!" I groaned. I still had Sten, Eren and Alfred, Derek and Talen to go. Oh and Morrigan too. Oh please God just throw me a bone here. Then when I went to see the pedestal there was only one. My eyebrow raised. Someone must have been able to get out of their own dream and started to help the others. I touched the last one that was glowing. I twirled around again before my feet settled down. My eyes were blurry until they finally settled on the last dream and my eyes grew wide.

It was Castle Highever. The soldiers were practicing in the courtyard, the elves scurrying about, just like I remembered it. I rubbed my eyes just to make sure. Yep, still fake Highever. I couldn't believe it. It made my heart feel better but I had to remember that this was fake. This place didn't exist, not anymore. I saw someone running toward me and I took a few steps back when I realized who it was.

"There you are! We were looking all over for you!" Oriana. It was Oriana. I just stood in place. The last time I saw her she was...She hugged me and it felt so real. "Good now that I found you, we can finally go to the mail hall. Eren is waiting for his blushing bride."

"Wait, what? What do you mean bride?" I said as Oriana took my hand and led me into the main hall. It was packed with elves, Thellan, Nan, Wendel, Cyla. Everyone I knew were there. Aldous was drinking with Mother Mallol, the guards that watched me train. It was so weird seeing everyone when I knew they were dead. Eren was sitting in the long table with his brother.

"Eren, I found her!" Oriana said, pushing me toward the table. I had a feeling of dread in my stomach. Eren saw me and gave me that annoying smirk that I don't see on him anymore.

"It's about time you came." He said coming up to me. This was all so surreal and, out of the corner of my eye I saw Alfred. He was snapping away at the servants. At least he wasn't taken in by the dream. "You weren't going to let me be all alone here? We are the ones being celebrated." Eren said. He was way too close for comfort. He tipped my chin and gave me a kiss. I broke away from him as quickly as I could. This was so wrong on so many levels.

"Ok, I'm thoroughly freaked out right now. Alfred!" He came over by my side and Eren looked at us, confused.

"What are you doing you two? Having your first marital spat?" Bryce shouted from the table, Oren in his lap. This was so wrong.

"Come and eat. You won't have to suffer from the party for too long. I know you will want to spend the night together." Oh man there was that mischeivous grin I knew all about. Eren smirked and crossed his arms. There was no way out of this. I knew he was too far gone. So I forced my hand.

"I'm sorry Eren. Alfred, get her." So he launched himself at Oriana. Eren looked apalled and everyone dropped their masks immediately. All the servants, all my friends, Bryce, Eleanor, Oren, Fergus, turned into demons. There were so many of them but I took my daggers and started to fight. Alfred bit at their legs, trying to make them fall. I dodged and avoided the attacks as much as I could, hitting when I could. The good thing was that the demons didn't have the faces of the people I knew. If they did...I knew I wouldn't have been able to kill them. Eren wasn't able to be a part of the battle. All he did was just stand there as Alfred and I slowly picked off all of the demons. Alfred and I double teamed when we could, trying to kill as many as we could in a short time. Twenty became 15 which turned into 10. Soon the demons became only 4. Alfred and I killed the last of them but forcing them on the ground and mauling/pummeling them into nonexistence.

It was over and everyone was gone. I panted heavily, feeling the bruises and cuts on my face. My lip was bleeding from when a demon clocked me in the face. I was so tired, physically, mentally, and emotionally. This dream was too much to bear for me. I looked over to Eren and he collapsed on his knees. Alfred whined going over to his side. Finally after a long silence, Eren looked at me with a dead look and silent tears. I covered my face and tried to control the rising sob in my throat.

"I'm sorry." We started to fall and spin. We ended up at the pedestal again and I saw everyone there.

"Oh here I am. And there you are."

"About time you got here." Talen said.

"This shouldn't be possible." Derek wondered outloud. Oh yeah, dwarves can't enter the fade. Everyone was here and in front of us was the pedestal and Niall.

"Niall!" Talen said.

"Everyone is here. Good." Niall said. He looked like a ghost, transparent.

"So now what do we do?" All the lights on the pedestal were gone but the light underneath it was still under us.

"There is one more door. We just need to break this shell." Niall explained. The pedestal was the last door.

"Wait. Everyone hold hands." I said

"Really we don't need to."

"Talen just shut up. You wanna get out of here or not." I snapped. He humphed. "We need to get rid of that thing." Morrigan, Talen and Wynne all pooled their mana. Everyone was holding hands or touching a part of someone else. They broke the pedestal. We were all falling, bathed in purple light. The ground became stable and Niall was wobbly on his feet. I grabbed him and let him sit on the ground. We were done with the visions and dream, we were finally on the last island of the fade. The ground was uneven and there were lyrium spikes all over the ground. The trees were black with no leaves and standing in the middle of all of hit was the Sloth demon. Its lips were sewed shut. It's claws were easily as long as daggers. I couldn't see the rest of the body due to the robes it wore.

"What is this? Rebellious mice?"

"You cannot keep us separate demon. We found ourselves through your nightmares."

"I promise to make it be-"

"How about I just freeze you and kick your-"

"I am hurt. So very, very-"

"Let's just kill it!" Derek shouted.

"Fine. You will kneel down to your betters mortal." It changed into an Ogre and roared. I looked around. Sten, Derek, Alistair were the only ones decked in armor. I had on my armor and my daggers, Leliana was only in her Chantry robes, her bow was gone. Eren was in his formal clothing. The others rushed in. Leliana, Eren and I stayed behind with Niall who was getting fainter by the minute.

"Niall? Niall you have to hold on as long as you can alright?"

"I'll try." I felt a shockwave and saw the demon transformed into a rage demon, spewing fire everywhere. Niall groaned as if someone hit him and he started to breath erratically.

"Hey! Stay with me!" Niall was getting weaker by the second. "Don't go Niall. Don't die!" No, I have to do something but nothing was coming to mind. I felt another shockwave. The demon was back to its original form. I didn't want to lose anyone else. Damn it! Even with all my knowledge I couldn't do anything!

"Please...please...hold on."

"I'm sorry. Thank you for all that you've done. Take the Litany from my body. Please save the Circle." Then he was no longer in my arms. The demon was sprawled on the floor. He was dead. My tears came out as I felt that woozy feeling from before. I felt something hard underneath me and I realized I was lying on a very, very and uncomfortable dirty floor. I heard the clinking of armor. I got up from where I was laying down and looked around. Everyone was kinda in a daze. Niall and the abomination were on the floor. Niall was dead. I had enough of this. I grabbed the nearest thing near me, which was a candle stick and threw it at the wall.

"Argh!" I let out a bunch of curses, punching the wall. Another sob. I'm so tired of not being able to save people. I thought that I could make a difference! Instead, I was worthless. I felt a hand on my shoulder. It was Wynne.

"You did everything you could." I just gritted my teeth. The blood ran down my hands. Life is just not fair. Talen stared at Niall's body before going through his robes and finding the Litany. It was a large and weathered book. Leliana came over and prayed for him. At this point all of my sadness was turned into rage. I didn't want to be here. I didn't want to be reminded of my failures. We got what we wanted from Niall and headed into the Tower. We passed by a corner and encountered a Drake.

"What's a drake doing here!?" Alistair shouted.

"Who cares, let's just kill it!" Derek said, laughing. Eren went ahead and charged along with them. I crouched to make my body smaller as the melee fighters kept the drake occupied. Alfred went along with me. As soon as I reached it's hide, I stabbed at it's legs. It roared in pain and looked over to me before Derek smashed it's chest. It's wings were making constant movement, so I had to dodge whenever they tried to hit me. Then Alfred crunched on one of them. I would have loved to just look at the Drake but I just wanted this to be over. I kept on stabbing it's hide before Sten did a mighty swing and beheaded it. The body slouched over, dead. I felt an emptiness in me for killing such a marvelous beast, but I just flicked it's blood off my daggers.

"How did a Drake get in here?" Alistair wondered, tapping the body with his foot.

"I have heard of an Enchanter bringing dragon eggs for study. Those eggs must have hatched." Wynne said.

"Am I to believe we are to meet more of these here?" Morrigan asked.

"It'd make for one stone of a story." Derek said.

"I doubt it. Let's go." Talen said. Eren had that far off look on his eyes. The dream was still in his mind. I had a few questions about it as well but now wasn't the time. We opened the door to the next room to continue and there were five dragonlings waiting for us. They were small but about the size of a full grown mabari. They had long sharp teeth and can occasionally let out small fire bursts. Morrigan was able to freeze three at one time which Sten and Derek took advantage of. Alfred got on in it's neck and one tried to nip at me. I crouched and punched it's chest. I heard it squeak in pain. I stabbed downward where I knew it's spine would be. I took out my dagger and the dragonling slumped to the floor. I let out a breathe and let my eyes close for a minute.

I wanted all of this to be over. I was tired. We left the pile of dragonlings on the floor and opened the door where a sloth abomination was waiting for us. Another door opened and more abominations came to help it. They seemed bigger than the ones on the lower floors. Their forms were more grotesque and their heads were so big I thought they might explode. I avoided the first one and started roll into two others that came out of the doors. I felt one grab my arm and squeeze. I knew it was hurting but I was so far gone into my mental pain that I didn't notice. I grabbed my dagger and, with one swipe, took off it's arm. It roared in agony and the other one right behind it, tackled me to the floor. I used the momentum to roll back to my feet and I tackled it back. I stabbed it right in the heart before using my other dagger to punch it in it's face. I took off my dagger and span around to slash it two times with my daggers. The one that had it's arm cut off, grabbed me by the waist and flung me into the wall. My back hurt from the impact and I bit my lip when I fell.

Eren came up and stabbed upward through the demon's head. It exploded while the one behind it, grabbed Eren's head. Alfred jumped on the demon's back and plunged his teeth into the neck. Eren coughed before charging the demon with his shield and impaling his sword in it. Eren and Alfred quickly ran away from the body before it exploded again. I watched all of this while on the floor. My back was hurting and my lip was bleeding profusely.

"Hey!" Talen shouted, waving his hand in front of me.

"I'm fine." I said, spitting out blood. Talen stared at me before letting more healing energy on my face.

"Give me your arm." Talen said. I didn't noticed that the armor almost caved in where the demon grabbed onto it. He healed that too. I saw him sway on his feet before I held Talen up with my hands.

"You're becoming exhausted."

"It's just the lack of mana. A lyrium potion will make me better. Let's see if we can find something in these rooms." Talen said. We found a few intact potions in the second room. One lyrium potion was passed around to Morrigan, Talen, and Wynne. I stared at nothing and I felt Alfred come and put his nose in my hand. I gave him a scratch behind his ear while he looked at me with a worried whine.

"How are you holding up?" Eren asked.

"I'm not dead am I?" I said. Eren flinched when I said that and I felt the guilt settle in my heart. "I'm sorry." Eren shook his head. At this point there were no more words to be said between us. Castle Highever was gone and there was no way it was coming back.

"I think we found everything we could." Alistair said. Talen sighed.

"We should be getting close to the Harrowing chamber. I think they've all gathered in there. This door should leads us to the stairs up to the chamber." Wynne said. We opened the door and we saw the purple pinkish barrier that held numerous dead bodies. They weren't even rotting because of how cold it was. Some weren't intact either. Body parts were all over the place and the poor soul that was in all of this? Cullen.

"This trick again? No, I will stay strong." Cullen said, kneeling down on the floor.

"Cullen? Cullen! It's me Talen. You were at my harrowing." Talen said, going down to his level. He tried touching the barrier but his hand got shocked for his attempt.

"This poor man. He has probably been here for so long without anything. Here, I have some extra food and-"

"Don't come near me!" Cullen roared. "Ugh, if any of you is human kill me now. They broke the others but they won't break me." Cullen said with a sob. I came out of the fade feeling nothing but to see him in all of this death and mess...It wasn't right. None of this was right.

"Lyrium withdrawal. Who knows how long he's been in here." Alistair said.

"What's with this barrier?" Talen wondered. "Cullen, is there anyone left alive?"

"Left alive? What are you talking about?"

"Irving and the other mages."

"They are in the Harrowing chamber. The sounds coming from there..."

"We have our destination." Talen nodded.

"Wait! You have to kill everyone that's up there! You don't know who has turned, what have they become!"

"You shut up. There's no way I'm letting all these people die. I'm saving my home." Talen said.

"I'm glad you said that." Wynne said.

"Maker turn his gaze on you. I hope your mercy hasn't doomed us all." I gave Cullen one long look before following the others up the stairs. Talen opened the door to the Harrowing Chamber. Uldred was doing his whole 'accept my gift' thing to one of the mages then boom, abomination.

I tuned out his whole speech of how the inevitable was our defeat and how week and feeble we were. I let out a world weary sigh. I wanted him to just shut his big mouth.

"How about I just kill you?" Talen said, conjuring up a quick fireball and hurling it toward Uldred. That did it. Leliana showered the demons with arrows and Uldred gave up his fleshy home for his actually body of a Pride demon.

Everyone got their butts into gear instead of Talen. He had to keep reading the Litany to make sure none of the other mages and Irving didn't turn. Three Abominations, one pride demon. I stayed behind with Talen to make sure no abominations got to him. Uldred was being distracted by the melee fighters. One of the abominations headed towards my way. I threw it off balance by planting my feet and punching it clear away. As it stumbled away from me I started to slash and I kept on slashing. I stabbed both of my daggers on its neck. It laid at a crumpled heap near me. I quickly ran toward Talen's side as the abomination exploded. Talen kept chanting the Litany.

Alistair, Sten and Derek were being flung around the room like rag dolls. Morrigan did her best to hit Uldred with spells. Wynne was going off with healing spells. Eren kept at his backside, chopping away on one of Uldred's legs. Alfred was right there next to him focusing on the other leg. Leliana's arrows were able to find soft spots in the jungle of spikes. Irving had erected a barrier around the surviving mages.

Everyone was doing their best to attack Uldred but it just wasn't enough to take him down. then whatever Eren did, did the trick. Eren was able to wound Uldred's leg enough for him to kneel. Sten was close behind Eren and severed Uldred's other leg. Everyone kept attacking it relentlessly. Eren went in front of Uldred to try to do the killing blow, but Uldred grabbed onto Eren. I wouldn't stand by that. I jumped onto Uldred's face and started to pummel him. Thud went my fists. Eren was screaming and I was starting to panic. I switched from pummeling, to stabbing. Uldred reared his head, trying to buck me. In doing so, he finally let go of Eren. I wasn't able to hold onto one of my daggers though.

I only had one dagger left so I took a note from a book I read long ago. I stabbed into his eye and just kept going deeper and deeper. Uldred roared in pain buy my arm just kept on going deeper as my body was washed with purple blood. Then the roaring stopped. I grunted and took out my dagger. I jumped away from Uldred, slipping on the blood, and I fell on my butt. Uldred was finally dead. Talen stopped the Litany and used his healing spells for everyone. Eren helped me off the floor. I had blood all over me but we both looked at each other and smiled. It was over. Eren wiped some of the blood off my face and I did a fist to chest bump. I sighed in relief when Wynne went over to Irving.

After everything we've done, the relief started to settle on my shoulders. I didn't know why but I just laughed.

"I think this one went crazy." Derek said, pointing at me. It made me laugh harder and I hugged my sides because they were hurting so much. I heard Wynne explain to Irving what Greagoir told Talen.

"We should go down the tower as quickly as possible. I might need some help." Irving chuckled.

"Here, you can lean on me." Alistair said, helping Irving walk. The other mages got up from the floor and followed us out. Cullen was out of the barrier when we came down. The barrier was being powered by Uldred and it went away when he died.

"I see you saved everyone that was in the chamber." Cullen said. He was throwing all the mages hateful glances.

"Don't start with that. Let's just go down and get Greagoir to open those gates." Talen said. We all made our way down the tower. Cullen was at the back of the group. He kept looking at the ground before finding a sword. When I saw him do that, I went to the back of the group and grabbed his arm.

"Don't you dare start attacking those mages."

"You don't know if they are even mages." Cullen harshly whispered to me.

"I do. They are fine now drop it before I make you drop it." The group has already continue without us. Cullen glared at me and I just gave him a tired look. Cullen was meant for more later on. He didn't need to throw it all away now. "Please, I'm tired of the killing." I heard him let out a sigh and he dropped the weapon. "Thank you."

"Don't thank me yet." Cullen said, taking his arm away. I sighed and followed him down. We found the group already talking to Greagoir.

"Maker's breath. Irving. I thought you dead. What is our status?"

"The Circle has been retaken. Uldred is...dead."

"Uldred tortured these mages in the Harrowing chamber. Hoping to break their wills and turn them into abominations. We don't know how many have turned."

"What? Don't be ridiculous."

"Of course he'd say that, he might be a blood mage."

"Enough! I am Knight Commander, not you." Ah I know where this is all going. I left them to talk to go to the bunk beds. Eren was talking to Oren quietly. I wanted to talk to him about his dream, but it was probably best to leave that be for the moment. I sighed and sat down on the bed. The battle for the Circle was over.

I was so tired, and dirty. The purple blood was still all over me. I needed a bath. A hot one.

"Are you alright?" Leliana said, sitting next to me. I sighed and rubbed my head.

"I was hoping to make a difference but another person died in my arms." Leliana stayed silent. I hated myself.

"Hey, anyone wants to take a bath? I don't want to sleep in bloody robes." Talen said. I had Leliana guide me to the female dormitories. I washed off everything and tried to put all that I saw out of my mind. My muscles were sore, my back hurt, and my equipment needed a good shine. I took out my extra pair of black clothes and boots. My stomach grumbled. I was hungry but at the same time I wasn't hungry. I knew that I saw a plate of food I would eat it. I decided to just write all that has happened and go to sleep.

9:30 Harvestmere 2nd

I woke up in the fade again, right on the ground. I really didn't want to be in here especially after the dreams that the Sloth demon gave us. I had enough of the fade at this point. I got up and Halo was there. Then I felt the small fire of rage settle in my stomach.

"And where were you when all the crap started to go down? I saw you in the fade with me during the dreams of Sloth and then you just vanished!" Halo recoiled at my tone. It seemed guilty and confused.

Inside. Not seen. Not hurt.

"Inside where?"

Inside Heart. Helped. Only way.

I shrugged.

"Helped how? How did you help? Tell me." Halo seemed to be silent and fidgeting.

Inside heart. Could travel. Find Pedestal. Help others.

"So you were inside me and with that I was able to find the pedestal? Well...I'm sorry for raising my voice at you and thank you for your help." I said. Halo came close to my face before letting out an 'eep' and hiding again.

"Nia?" I turned my head around and Wynne was standing right behind me. I let out a sigh and stood up.

"Hey Wynne."

"What are you doing here?"

"I don't know, I heard that the fade is a good place for a vacation." I said flatly. Wynne gave me one of her looks.

"You are not a mage, are you? I would have known if you were."

"No. It's a weird thing of mine. This has been happening for a few years. I don't know how I come into the fade every other night."

"We haven't cracked it either." Talen said right next to me, before I jumped.

"Jesus Christ! Don't do that!" He snickered. Wynne both gave us the look. Yes the look. Every annoyed parent and grandparent has one. We both became quiet and Talen crossed his arms.

"For some odd reason, she comes into the fade sporadically. Not every night just every once in a while for a short amount of time. She can't manipulate anything though so she's not a mage. You can have a Templar check her out if you're not sure." Talen explained.

"Oh wait that's true huh? Why can't Alistair do it?"

"...I actually never thought of that..." Talen said, rubbing his face sheepishly. I face palmed.

I woke up from the fade after that face palm and wrote about it. No doubt that Talen and Wynne are still there. I looked out at the windows they had around. It was dark out. I sighed and put my face in the pillow. I didn't want to but I got up anyway. I stretched out my muscles. My back ached from when the abomination threw me into the wall. I walked around. A few Templars were walking through the corridors, trying to get most of the bodies out of here. I went toward the practice rooms and saw Cullen near the bookshelves that were still standing near the stairs that went to the second floor. I felt bad for him but I knew that he would recover from this. Cullen had a destiny, one that wasn't here.

"I should have died with them..." Cullen mumbled as I passed by him. I stopped right before I took the stairs. I really shouldn't have said anything but I didn't want him to wallow in his depression.

"Maybe the Maker has a place for you later in life. Maybe that's why he spared you." I said. Cullen looked at me for a second before I made my way upstairs.I went to the library in the second floor. It looked like that they finally got rid of most of the bodies on this level. There were so many books everywhere. The mages were going to have their hands full trying to clean this place up. I walked next to the bookshelves, my hand touching the spines. Most were about magic in languages I couldn't understand. Most likely Tevinter.

"You are awake." I jumped where I was and turned around. Sten was sitting down, his armor on the table. I didn't even notice him.

"Couldn't sleep. There are so many books in here." Sten went and began to clean away. I sat down across from him and watched. There was no point in trying to read any of this. I'm not a mage so there was no information I could learn from them.

"Are you going to just sit there and watch me?"

"I have a question actually. I saw you talking with someone before we came in the tower. Who was it?" Sten stayed quiet. We stayed in our silence but I kept on staring at him. I was stubborn and refused to move.

"You won't leave until I answer, will you?"

"Nope." He sighed.

"I was sent here by the Arishok to answer a question. My brothers and I camped by Lake Calenhad. We had not seen any darkspawn until then. They came out of the ground, the sky, our very shadows harbored the darkspawn. That is when I fell and my sword became lost. That man was where the sword was last. He told me of a man in the Frostback Mountains who had scavenged that area earlier. As soon as we can, I would like to meet this man and reclaim what's mine." Sten explained. I nodded my head as I remembered it from the game.

"Why is the sword so important?"

"That sword was made for my hand alone. I have carried it from the day I was sent into the beresaad. I was to die wielding it for my people. Even if I were cross Ferelden and Tevinter, unarmed and alone, I would be slain on sight by the entaam. They would know me as soulless, a deserter. No soldier would cast aside his sword while he drew breath." I listened intently. Sten looked sad and frustrated.

"Don't worry Sten. I'll help you find it, I promise."

"...Perhaps those words are empty, but thank you all the same." I smiled and he smiled slightly. He kept on shining his armor and I crossed my arms to settle my head down on them. My eyes felt heavy as I watched him. I must have dozed off again.

* * *

**Ah another chapter done. Hopefully you guys had an awesome Halloween/ Dia de los Muertos :3**

**_EDIT: I HAD TO CUT THE CHAPTER AGAIN BEFORE IT HIT 7000._**

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**redrosemary: **_I'm glad you like it. I always thought of Alistair's dream to be slightly annoying, especially since sometimes, you don't even meet his sister before the dream.  
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	12. Enter Suave man

9:30 Harvestmere 2nd

I didn't have any dreams when I napped, thankfully. I began to wake up and I felt someone shaking my shoulder. I groaned and Talen was there.

"Ugh."

"Come on, time to eat. Some people are waiting for your soup."

"Why am I always on soup duty?" I said, rubbing my face.

"Because it's just that good. Come on, I'll show you to the kitchens." We went up the stairs to the third level. They weren't able to get all the bodies from this part. Talen had found the key to the store room and gave me some materials to make my soup. I had to settle with a simple milk, potato, carrot, and onion soup. It smelled heavenly and my stomach growled again. I gained my appetite back. After I made the soup, Talen and I headed downstairs where they had clean out the rooms. We had settled to eat in the practice rooms where they cleaned out everything. Everyone was there doing miscellaneous things. I put down the stock pot of soup and got the bowls and spoons. Derek came into the room with Wynne right behind him.

"Time to meet the new member of our saving the world team, Wynne!" Derek announced. He slapped her back like he usually did with everyone. She stumbled slightly and rubbed her back.

"Oh please. I couldn't sit by and rest on my laurels." Wynne said. I finished passing around the soup and the four GWs were already getting their second bowl. Man, these guys were bottomless holes.

"So what is our next objective?" Alistair asked. Talen hmmed, Derek did that thinking beard thing, and Eren did the whole Gendo pose.

"What about Orzammar? I need to check up on my kid sister. We can go in there, get King Endrin's seal of approval, whack a few darkspawn heads, and be off!" Oh if it was only that easy. No one here knew that Orzammar was in the middle of a civil war. I'm guessing we'll be on Bhelen's side since Derek's sister is in a relationship with him. Bhelen was always a better choice anyway.

"Then our next destination is set. Eat as much as you can. We'll start traveling in a bit." Eren said, taking off a chunk of his bread and dipping it in his soup.

"I see. Nia, a word if you can?" Wynne said. Everyone kinda looked at me. It made me feel like I was on the spot. I cleared my throat and I followed her into the apprentices quarters. Talen wasn't far behind and I heard clunking footsteps following him. Then I saw Irving.

"Um what's this about?"

"So sorry! Didn't mean to be late! Soup was delicious as always." Alistair said.

"Is this the one you spoke of?"

"Yes. This is the girl I encountered in the fade. Talen explained to me that she wanders and remembers even though she isn't a mage."

"Wait, you remember your time in the fade?"

"Yep and that's where you come in. Do your Templar thing. Check to see if she can tap into mana."

"Couldn't you at least ask me for permission?"

"Nope. Grey Warden authority, and you will respect me. Go use your Templar stuff."

"It's a bit more complicated and how can you boss me around I'm the senior-"

"Alistair." Wynne shut up him.

"Alright. You might feel a little tingling." He put his hand on top of my head. I closed my eyes expecting something to happen. I opened them, after a bit, and looked around. "You're not feeling any wooziness, any temptation to turn people into toads?"

"We don't do that. No one does that. Why does everyone think that?" Talen wondered.

"Nope. I don't feel anything at all." I shrugged his hand off. Wynne and Irving talked silently to themselves.

"You think they're going to cut up my mind to see what's different about it?" I asked Talen.

"Nah. We stopped doing that a couple of years ago. It turns out people like their brains inside their head, who knew?"

"Hah, you're joking right? Right?" Alistair said. Wynne came over.

"Nia can you tell me how long this has been happening?" Wynne asked.

"Well, since I came to Ferelden. I had a dream where I was in the fade and then I fell. That's when I found myself right in Highever Castle where Eren's family was. I don't remember how I got there though. Since then I've been having random fade dreams." I explained.

"Where were you from originally when you were transported from the fade to Highever Castle?" Irving asked. I felt my heart jump to the floor.

"Not from around here, really far away actually. I already talked to this to someone else. They told me they might have thought that someone that wanted me out of the picture used a spell on me to transport me to this-Ferelden. I don't know how magic like this works." I said. Irving nodded, accepting what I said.

"When you dream what do you dream of?" Irving asked.

"Place I've been to or my home. Only recently have I been dreaming about places where I've traveled before or where I'm sleeping."

"And you've never encountered anything besides your companion?" Wynne asked. I averted her gaze.

"So there is something that's attached to you, I knew it!" Talen shouted, pointing at me.

"You shush. Well I have something that travels with me. I call it Halo since it looks like one. Sometimes when I'm traveling with Halo, it would suddenly stop right in front of me and tell me 'Danger.' I wouldn't let me go further or even go back to where we were. Sometimes I just sat there with Halo, not doing anything. Besides those few times where it told me to stop, I haven't seen anything." Wynne came up to me and put two fingers on my head. She gave a face of concentration but after a moment, she stopped. She gave me this look of surprise and then it transformed into one of understanding.

"Please stay here while I go talk to Irving." Wynne said. They started to talk in hush tones. I sighed.

"All this fuss over me going into the fade every once in a while, how is that bad?"

"It's not bad per say, it's odd. No one has ever remembered their time in the fade without being a mage of being forced into it like when the Sloth demon did it. When you wake up in the fade, you can channel it and do magic. For you to go in there and nothing happening on this side, is unusual." Talen said.

"I've never heard of anything like this happening. I know that everyone goes into the fade when they dream, but only mages can manipulate the energy. You sure you're not a mage in disguise?" Alistair wondered.

"Nope or else I'd be flinging fireballs instead of just standing around, waiting for something to fall so I can break its face."

"Why are you so aggressive? It's always punching things in the face with you." Alistair said.

"Because violence is always the answer. Come on Alistair get with the times." Wynne came over after her little discussion with Irving.

"Nia, with your permission, I would like to send you and myself into the fade. I want to understand this odd connection you have. It's nothing that we have ever seen before." Wynne said. "It will not take long for Irving to gather the lyrium required for this."

"If you can do something about this weird going into the fade thing, then by all means, go ahead. I don't mind." I would love to understand it as well. Maybe if they can fix it, I could freeze things and burn stuff too!

"Thank you. Talen, tell Eren to give us a moment while we go into the fade. It won't take too long."

"Alright." Talen said. Alistair was about to follow him when Wynne stopped him.

"I would rather you stay here. If something tries to cross the fade through one of us..." She let the implication hang in the air.

"Oh right. Of course I'll stay." The preparations weren't all that fancy. I had to sit down somewhere comfortable while Irving went and brought a bowl of lyrium. It was a small but was enough power for Wynne to go into the fade and drag me with her. Irving wouldn't be able to join. They needed someone on the outside doing all the magical stuff. Then they can send more people in the fade like Wynne and I, the unfortunate sidekick. Still this was slightly scary. You never know if something decided to join us through me or Wynne. I mean, I knew I could summon my daggers in the fade and stuff, but I didn't want to fight anymore demons after today.

"Sit down and clear your mind. Do not think of anything. Focus on your memories of the fade." Wynne said. I sighed and closed my eyes. I counted in my head, letting my breathing slow down. Until, I felt myself begin to fall.

Just like the first time I passed through the fade, so many years ago.

I opened my eyes and I looked around. It wasn't like the other times where a path would magically appear before me. For some odd reason I was in my old neighborhood where my mom's house used to be. I sighed and went to sit on the stone wall. Halo was floating around me. It seemed confused that I was there again.

"Yeah I know, it's a little off. I came here with a little help. In fact, I'm going to need you to stay visible. We got a visitor coming."

Other people?

"Yep."

Don't see me.

"Oh come on don't be people shy. She won't do anything." I said. Halo sat on my shoulder like it usually would. If Halo was a person, they'd be fidgeting with their fingers.

"What interesting architecture." Wynne said, appearing in front of me. Halo flew behind me. "Good there you are. Hmm, you have a corporal body and very odd choice in garments." She was surveying the place. It must have looked strange. I must have looked strange. After all, I had on a t-shirt, jeans, and running shoes. Actually, this felt a lot more comfortable than being in those rough clothes all the time.

"If I may?." I just shrugged and gave her the go ahead. She came closer to me and put her hand on my forehead. "You don't have any talent yet you hold a straight connection to the fade."

No touch!

Halo did it's light show and hovered in front of me. Wynne took out her staff. I felt Halo glare at her as it got brighter. I didn't want any conflict now.

"Whoa, whoa! Whoa. Ok, intro. Halo, Wynne. Wynne, Halo. This is the spirit that I was talking about that follows me everywhere."

"How extraordinary. A spirit of the fade." Wynne said, reaching her hand out but Halo perched on my shoulder again. She had this knowing look on her face. She was probably trying to review how I got one of the nice spirits to follow me.

No touch.

"They were just checking me."

No touch! Halo grew brighter. It was actually angry.

"Why aren't we allowed to touch her?" Wynne asked, crossing her arms. She was challenging it.

Have to keep safe. No touch.

"Sorry. It's never like this. Though, I wouldn't know really since Halo never met other people." Halo felt like a cat shifting its attention between the two.

"Hm. How much do you know about the connection between the fade and humanity?"

"I know that everyone goes to the fade when they dream. Mages are the only ones who are able to remember their time in the fade and are able to manipulate the energy. It's also home to the Black city, once the seat of the Maker grew tainted by the mages of Tevinter when they stepped in it. The Maker cursed them and sent them back. They became the first darkspawn. The Maker, before making humanity, made the fade. Then when He grew tired of them, He made humanity. Of course some spirits didn't like that and started to mess with humans. They are demons. Spirits like Halo are good spirits but they don't hold any interest in humans." I recited. I've played a lot of dragon age. Don't judge me!

"You seem to be well versed." Wynne said, raising her eyebrow.

"I did a lot of reading."

"So what I'm wondering is why a spirit is helping you? It could very well be the cause of your connection."

"So the reason I'm here is because it's Halo's fault?"

"More or less."

No. Sent to protect. Only way. Master chose her.

"Wait what?"

Master had faith. Faith was rewarded. Sent to little one. In death, ripped open fade. Alive but not Alive. Here but not Here. Power to protect. Power to send home. I must protect until end.

It was kinda hard to follow Halo's broken speech, but it was coming all together. This answered many questions of mine.

"Wait, so when that accident happened to me, you opened a rift between time and space?"

Sent to protect. To keep alive. Had to choose world. World of healers. But not here. Not alive.

"I see. She is not supposed to exist in this world. Yet you still exist. An irregularity." Wynne wondered out-loud.

Yes. Here but not Here. Alive but not Alive. Not whole. Must protect. Until sending to home.

It was scary to think that I almost did die that day. Or I did die that day? This was getting confusing. I'm not that afraid to die, but the fact that it opened a portal so that I can survive was a pretty big deal. But I wondered, what did it mean from alive but not alive?

"Who was your master? Who sent you to protect me?"

The little one's Mother.

My eyes widened in the realization. My mom always prayed for my protection. She always made sure that I was safe. She had tons of dreams where an angel would protect me. I never thought that it would protect me to this extent. My mom sent it to protect me. I started to tear up.

"My mom?" I whispered.

"That still begs the question as to why you remain here in the world. If you aren't supposed to exist, why are you still here?" Wynne said.

Cannot go home. Not enough power. Comes slowly. Need time. Must save. Must protect. Must keep alive. Not alive if separated. This form power saver. Once fully powered, full form. Send home.

"So you are keeping her here until you have enough power to send her home. It saved you from death, but in doing so you have been transported here. Was this your home?" I sniffed a little bit and wiped my eyes.

"Yeah."

"It keeps you alive through your connection to the fade. I was wondering why my healing spells took so little mana for you. But as long as you don't rush into death, I think you'll be fine. I will keep an eye on you young lady. If there are any changes, I ask that you come to me." Wynne explained. I nodded and Halo hovered in front of me.

Don't be sad. You are loved, more than you know.

I woke up in a daze. I got a few of my questions answered. Ones that I've been wondering about for years, but there were still a few that came up. I'm not supposed to exist so what would happen if I were to go away? What would happen to Eren and Oren? Those can be answered for later. Right now I'm a little mind boggled.

"How are you feeling? I got a little jumpy when you started crying all of a sudden." Alistair said and sure enough my eyes were moist. I just wiped my eyes a bit. Wynne gave me a knowing smile and Irving was already cleaning up the bowl. I let out a huge sigh.

"I'm fine. Don't worry, just a very powerful experience is all." I let out a shaky breath. "Thank you Wynne.

"It was my pleasure Nia." I heard a knock from the door. Eren was there.

"Everything is ready. We also got our next location. Get your armor on. We're going back to Ostagar." Alistair visibly tensed. My eyebrows went up. Wynne's lips became a thin line. Ostagar, a place that held many scars for my teammates. I got off the bed and went to where everyone was, which was the main gates. There was a another person there. He had a sling on his arm. He looked haggard, gaunt and weak.

"I recognize you." Alistair said.

"Heh, glad to see you too. I must have the demon's luck."

"Me and Leliana were out hunting when we came across this guy all bloodied and passed out. Bandaged him, took him back here. I knew him. He was one of Cailan's guards. Ran when we started fighting." Derek explained and glared at him. "Name's Elric Maraigne. Told us that he has some information about Ostagar."

"He has a key that unlocks a chest. It was entrusted to us by King Cailan that has information that was important. We decided that it was better go there now than later." Eren said. Eren, Talen, Derek, and Alistair were giving the poor man the stink eye. I felt bad for him, but there was nothing much I could do. We left him to the Templars. Considering that the nobles want him dead, this is a good place as any other to stay safe. We started to pack up our things and Oren came to me as I was cleaning my armor and knives from the purple blood.

"Are you and Uncle going away Nia?" Oren asked me. The Templars told me he was very well behaved during his time here.

"Yeah, we need to go to Ostagar to look for something that was important." Oren started to tear up.

"But, but I don't want you to leave Nia." Oren said, covering his eyes.

"Hey, look at me Oren. I won't be gone too long. How about you do me a favor?" I said. Oren nodded. "You see this tower? It's going to take a bit of work to clean the place up. Can you help the mages while you're here? Then once we're done beating the bad men, we'll come here and get you again. How does that sound?" Oren sniffled and put on a strong face.

"Ok Nia." I nodded and kissed him on the forehead. Eren came into the apprentice quarters and Oren went to him as well. Eren and I shared a small look before I went back to cleaning my things. I still haven't talked to him about the dream. I know that I eventually will though. I heard Oren and Eren talk softly while I finished with my armor. I started to put it on and Eren ruffled Oren's hair.

"Are you ready?" Eren asked.

"Yeah. Let's get going." We all gathered at the main gates and waiting for the boat to take us away. Irving and Wynne were talking in whispers while Greagoir and Cullen were watching us leave. I saw Cullen give me small glances here and there until the last of us boarded the boat. We said goodbye to the Tower. Talen gave it a good look as we went out into the lake. I had a feeling he would go back to it one day.

"Are we going to stop by Flemeth's?" Talen asked.

"Probably. Why?" Eren asked. Talen stayed silent. I had a feeling it was about the black grimoire that he found in Irving's study. If he gave that to Morrigan, then we would have to fight against Flemeth. If we do, God protect us.

-/-

We walked well until we encountered a worn and dark path. It had barriers set up, with various tents everywhere and everything for a camp but no one was around.

"It's like someone got up and left." Derek wondered.

"It's creepy." Talen wondered.

"Do you hear that?" Sten said.

"Hear what?" Then I heard the hissing. I froze. Ok remember that abominations were bad? Yeah, Spiders. Spiders bad. Very bad. Did I mention that I have a phobia of spiders? These were big freaking spiders! They were the size of great danes! Holy Jesus! Did I panic? Yes. Yes I did.

I screamed like a girl while everyone around me was busy killing them. They came from the trees, their cocoons in the branches. I was just freaking my head out. I think I blacked out a bit. After the battle was over, I went to lean over a tree to trying to breath.

"Are you ok? They didn't-"

I almost vomited on Leliana.

"I'm guessing she doesn't like spiders."

No shit Alistair.

I retched until I was just dry heaving. The spiders were curled on the ground, they looked disgusting. I felt like I needed a bath, a shower with some scalding hot water. I felt like they were crawling over me. Ugh.

"Why are you afraid? They are only creatures of nature." Sten said.

"I had a really bad experience with them when I was young. Yeah, I know it's stupid and irrational but where I come from, it's called arachnophobia. The irrational fear of spiders and that is a big freaking spider!" I shouted. I rinsed my mouth out and Leliana led me like a child so that I wouldn't have to see them.

Morrigan was giving me an evil smirk.

"If I appear as a spider while we were in the fade, what would you do?"

"Probably pee myself, run towards the edge, and dive off."

Yes she cackled.

-/-

It was getting late and, after cleaning out my stomach from the spider killing, I just wanted to rest. I was back on soup duty. Seems to me the duty placed on me by the entire group. I couldn't blame them. I was a professional cook in a previous lifetime. I went ahead and gave everyone their share. I always had to make sure to make a bowl for myself and hide it or glutton Talen would find it and eat it.

Alistair was talking to Wynne after eating. He was probably talking to her about a few of his socks. It's actually really easy to get holes. We're walking all day on our feet. Constantly rubbing feet against sock equals holes.

Not counting the holes we get when we get stabbed. Leliana kept looking at me. I know that spider incident was making her curious.

"If you really want to know something Leliana all you have to do is ask."

"You mean the fact that you nearly soiled yourself after seeing those spiders?" Alistair said.

"You say one more word and I'll keep the cheese away from you."

"I wouldn't want you to remember something horrifying from your childhood. It is why I have not asked."

"It wasn't horrifying. Just something that got overblown in my mind. You see I was minding my own business, going to the bathroom right? As I peered into the bowl to do my business, the biggest spider that I ever saw, was right there, covering everything! I screamed and my dad got rid of it. Then, later that day, when I was taking a bath, another freaking spider crawled up my arm! So I just cracked my arm like a whip and it went splat on the floor! Ever since then I hated spiders. For some odd reason, the older I got, the more scared I got. I can't even look at a spider that's the size of my pinky before freaking out."

"You mentioned there was a word for this. Phobias or something or other." Derek wondered, letting out a nice belch.

"Awesome. 7/10. Arachnophobia. Phobia itself means irrational fear. Arachne is the classification we use for different types of spiders. Put them together and it's the irrational fear of spiders. It's different for some people too. Bees, snakes, heights." I described. Then I felt something crawling on my back and yelped. Talen was behind me with a cat tail. Everyone started to snicker. My face turned red with embarrassment.

"You jerk! Come here!" I chased him around the camp with my daggers before I bumped into Sten. Talen laughed at me and I decided not to give in anymore. I humphed and decided to go into the tent me and Leliana shared. I unfurled my cot. I'd rather not be the butt of anymore jokes. Time to get some sleep.

9:30 Harvestmere 2nd

I had a nightmare of spiders and found myself snuggling into Leliana. I grew beet red and decided to go out. I was tired but there was no way I was going back in there with what I did. No one was up and I found it odd that Talen wasn't where he should be. He should have been taking watch. Then I heard someone talking. Two people talking. I got out of my tent and followed where the voices were. They were coming from the trees near the camp. It was still dark out. I crouched low and walked slowly until I reached the voices. It was Talen and Morrigan. I sat against the trunk of a tree and strained to listen.

"Spell of immortality?"

"Oh if only 'twere so. In here...how she has lived so long...All Flemeth..." Morrigan kept her voice hushed. It was hard to hear, but I knew what they were talking about. Talen must have given the grimoire while we were at the tower. If that's the case there are two ways this can go; We kill Flemeth or we lie to Morrigan. I wonder which one of them should we were going to do. I really don't want to 'kill' Flemeth. That battle was a pain even in game. I shudder to think how it would be in real time.

This meant that Morrigan wasn't going to be with us when we visit Flemeth. I started my way back to camp. Years of sneaking in the dark to go to work has finally paid off! Signing off for now.

Noonish

Well I have one more person to keep track of.

I was humming a song with Leliana doing her own little spin-off along with me. It was better doing this than just walking in complete silence. Then we started to hear some shouting down the path.

A woman was shouting help.

"Oh please you must help me! Bandits have over taken our wagon! Please it's this way!"

Ah, I know where this is going. Cutscene time! We followed her and who would have guessed? No really guess. Yep our favorite elf, Zevran. We didn't get that whole big tree thing like in the cut scene. Instead we got 5 extra guys right behind us. Archers came from the boulders. The chick who led us here was sparkling with mana.

"The Grey Wardens die here!"

We were surrounded by all sides. Talen took the initiative and bombarded the archers with a big fireball. Derek, Sten, Eren and Alfred went for the 5 big dudes behind us. The two rouges and mages were left in front. Morrigan changed into her bear form and I was right beside her. I dodged Zevran's blades and tackled the mage to the ground. One, two punches and and she got knocked out. I wasn't able to do the finishing blow. I had sensed someone behind me. Zevran started his attack on me.

I rolled along the floor, using my offensive punches to keep his blades away from me. It confused him that my daggers weren't pointing the usual way, but his surprise became...joy? I got him once on the shoulder, but he used that to nick my cheek. One guy down on Morrigan's side. Archer's down to one. 2 big guys left.

I kept on the attack. Zevran was wearing leather armor. I didn't need to only aim at the face. Our blades met and he was enjoying this. I knew that this was a death mission for him. He was way better than me when it came to fighting, but he was only doing this to kill himself. Even so, I found myself enjoying the fight slightly. Still all good things must come to an end. Soon Eren came over and smacked him upside the head with his shield, knocking him out. I didn't notice the few cuts he was able to make in my armor. I felt Wynne's healing energy. Zevran was out cold on the ground. Everyone else dead. Grey Wardens one, Loghain, zero!

"Who is this guy?" Talen wondered.

"What should we do with him?" Leliana asked. Eren rubbed his chin.

"Take off his armor, get rid of his daggers, and tie him up. This is all a bit strange for me." So we did as he asked. I was given the job to guard over Zevran in case he woke up. Leliana did really good with the ropes. I couldn't help myself though. Zevran is a really fit guy. I did do a once over before Derek gave me the go ahead to wake him up. One slap coming up.

"Ugh, hmm, what? Oh, I would rather though I'd wake up dead or not wake up at all." I sat down on a rock and had my chin in my hand. This was going to be interesting.

"I have some questions." Derek said.

"I have some as well, like why am I tied up and not being ravished?" I snorted beside him and only then did he noticed that I was there. "Well, my luck isn't so bad after all."

"Hey." Eren snapped his fingers in front of Zevran's face. "Focus."

"If I am to be interrogated let me save you some time. My name is Zevran, Zev to my friends. I am a member of the Antivan Crows. I was brought here for the sole purpose to slay any surviving Grey Wardens. Which I have failed at sadly."

I heard Leliana whispered something to Eren. I could already guess she was explaining to him what the Crows were. Assassins.

"We're glad you failed. Though I wouldn't have minded running my hammer through your chest." Derek said. Intimidation. Zevran chuckled nervously.

"So would I, if I were in your position. But unfortunately, its a tad detrimental to one's budding assassin career." This was so much more funnier than watching it on the big screen. Considering that Zevran is almost butt nude.

"Why are you laughing?" Talen asked. I tried really hard not to giggle, but I just put my hand over my mouth.

"An Antivan Assassin sent to our heads. Huh, smells like Loghain." Derek said. He stroked his beard. It was an amazing beard.

"And how would you know how Loghain smelled like?" Alistair asked. Derek just gave his signature laugh.

"I was the one who was at the meeting remember? Betrayal has a distinct scent."

"Yes that was the name who hired me. Let me guess, you pose a threat to his position of power, no?"

"Does that mean you're loyal to Loghain?" Eren asked.

"I was contracted for a service, so no, I was not loyal to him."

"Alright enough questions. Loghain bought him, but he failed. I say we kill him now and get on our way." Derek said.

"Well my life is forfeit and if you didn't kill me now, the crows will later. The thing is, I like living. And since you all are strong enough to give the crows pause, let me serve you instead." Zevran said. That put a stop to everything. Eren pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Give us a moment. Nia, stand watch." The group went up a bit of the road to talk I guess. That left me with Zevran.

"And what about you, mi niña hermosa? Are you another one of the fated Grey Wardens?"

"Nope, just a tag-along. All the Grey Wardens are men."

"I see and what is your opinion on all of this?"

"Why are you asking me?"

"Well you must have a voice in this group, no? If I have you on my side, then I at least have some chance at surviving. I can always pay you later, should I live." I smiled and rolled my eyes.

"Sorry. I'm taken." I showed him my hand and ring.

"Ah forbidden fruit. All the more to give chase."

"Don't even try. Truthfully, I find this all funny. I don't really think you'll do anything after this." Since you're a death seeker and all. "If they ask me, I'll say to keep you. And no, you don't have to pay me back in services."

"Ah how unfortunate." I heard a couple of choice words from Alistair and Morrigan. For once they actually agreed on something. So everyone came back. Their faces looking stiffer.

"Nia, what do you think? Should he join us or no?" Eren asked me.

"I vote for join."

"What!? But he tried to kill us!" Alistair said.

"And every single time I don't cook a meat thoroughly, I could too. He was only doing his job and he actually looks like he repents for what he has done."

"Slightly."

"Ok, slighty repents." Eren looked to the rest. Morrigan was in a huffy fit. Sten was still as a rock. Wynne was sitting down. Alistair looked peeved. Leliana seemed interested. Talen and Derek just didn't care.

"Alright, we'll recruit you. Leliana, give him his things back. Nia and Derek if you please." Derek came and slammed his hammer almost on Zevran's legs. Zevran tried not to show it but he was scared. Derek looked smug. I grabbed my dagger and cut his rope. He rubbed his wrists together.

"Oh one more thing." I punched where his little man was and was that a squeak? Funny. "Try to kill any of us, and I will personally make you a eunuch." Oh I'm so glad I mastered the innocent/creepy smile.

"She's done it too. Such a shame for that poor man." Derek laughed and I looked away. Unfortunately, the wagon was shot so we just got what was necessary. They did have a lot of food so that was good. The group was just getting bigger. I didn't know if Shale was available, but also adding Oghren, the group would total 11.

Night

We finally chose a place to camp. Talen was helping me with the food. After burning the pot, I sent him away and got my usual helpers (Leliana and Alistair). I got some bread and heated up some butter. It didn't make it less hard, but it added a touch of flavor. Zevran was polishing his daggers. His tent wasn't as near as the others. He caught my eye and winked at me. Amazingly I didn't scare him off when I punched his balls. I wonder what that said about him. I scoffed and rolled my eyes.

"So, why did you vote on keeping the assassin?"

"His name is Zevran, Alistair."

"I-I know but you don't seem to be the type to enlist men that want to kill us."

"Eye candy."

"What?" Leliana started to giggle.

"I must say he is very fetching." Zevran's eyebrow raised. Oh yeah, he was definitely eavesdropping.

"Oh you can't be thinking what I think you're thinking."

"How would you know what I'm thinking what you think I'm thinking?"

"Ok you just confused me."

"Just call it a feeling."

"I hope you're not thinking about your loins."

"If I was thinking about my loins Alistair, you would have already been in my tent, fully ravished." Alistair was gaping, red faced, and Zevran laughed. Oh well there's a shade of red I haven't seen in a while. Leliana full on laughed. Derek, Sten and Talen came from the woods with a boar. Food was passed all around. Alfred got his share of meat. Talen and Eren went to go talk to Morrigan after Talen had mentioned about the grimoire. Long day. Long entry, oh my gosh! Well good night.

* * *

**I have to admit I got a thing for Zevran, I just love spanish accents! So the next update might be a bit slower. I cut off a chunk of my knuckle at work, so my finger hurts :( I'll try to work through the pain for you guys though!**

**Shout out to A . zareth, Doombug, and Smugget, for following this story! :D**

**ElyssaCousland**: _The next time that happens, I will allow you to slap me in the face_ :3  
**redrosemary: **_Mmmm, digital cupcakes are delicious_ x3  
**Chaosrin: **_Actually that comes a little bit more later in the story_ :3  
**shinedown: **_I know you were looking forward to that in this chapter, but it will come out next chapter for sure!_

**I am just a humble writer for the masses, asking for a simple review to continue my story :3**


	13. Traveling Part 1

9:30 Harvestmere 3rd

I dreamt of the fade again.I woke up on the ground, my sight blurred. Halo floated right above me. I got up and took a look at my surroundings. The forest was reminiscent of the forests near our camp. The fade was starting to show me places that I've traveled recently and less of my home. I wasn't sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing. I'd rather not think about it. Halo was right next to me. For some odd reason Halo looked different. At first Halo was slightly transparent when I first met it. Slowly it became more...whole and recently I've noticed the change.

"Did you gain more weight Halo?"

More power.

"Oh. So does that mean I'll be able to go home soon?" It fidgeted again, not knowing what to answer. "It's ok. Come on, let's go like we usually do." We started to walk again like we usually do, before I heard a roar. That wasn't a sound I was used to hearing in the fade. I immediately had my daggers in my hands. I started to run toward the roaring with Halo right behind me, telling me that it was alright. I wanted to make sure though.

"Again." I heard Morrigan say. I got through the forest and I saw Morrigan in front of a bear. I started to run to her. I wasn't sure at the time if it was a type of demon that was attacking her so my instincts took over.

"Morrigan! Get away!"

"'Tis nothing to be scared of. Tis only Talen. In return for fetching something of importance, I offered to teach him of shapeshifting. Still, his bear is lacking." I stopped when she said that and looked at the bear. The Talen bear snorted. "A bear is bigger than that. At least you pass as a cub." A light started to develop the bear and Talen stood instead.

"Hey I'm trying. You have to at least give me that."

"Trying does not accomplish the task. You either master it or you don't." Morrigan said. Talen growled, pouted, and crossed his arms.

"I'll practice some other time. So, where's your friend Halo?" Talen asked. I looked behind me and Halo was gone again. I sighed and shrugged.

"It's people shy."

"Halo?"

"It's her spirit friend. It's the reason she can come into the fade."

"How interesting. How were you able to drag a spirit under your control? You are not a mage."

"Yes we've already established that Morrigan. I didn't drag it under control. It was sent to me by my mami." Talen snickered but I didn't care. I love mi mami. Morrigan tried to put a hand to hide her smile.

"If that is the case, then your mother must be a very powerful mage." Well my grandfather was a psychic from what my mom told me. I'm not sure if they could use spirits as well. If my mom inherited that from him then it might explain things but at this time it's only a hypothesis. A very, very unbelievable one. I'd rather say I just got lucky.

I was going to keep talking to them but the dream ended right there. I rubbed my face and peeked outside of the tent. The sky still had that hint of night but the light from the sunrise was already starting to come out. I didn't feel very well rested. I'm going to have to get a new journal soon. This one was almost full. Leliana was still sleeping next to me. I got out and smelled the morning air. I did a few mild stretches to work out the kinks in my back. Oh my gosh, those were a lot of pops. Sleeping on the ground always made my back hurt.

"Oh good to see you're awake." Derek was keeping watch for once. He had a small carving in his hand.

"I always wake up early. It's just a habit of mine." I took out my armor and started to clean it with a rag. "So have you talked to Eren about what are we going to do while you're at Ostagar?"

"Heh, you're not coming with missy?"

"I don't have any ties to Ostagar and I'm not a Grey Warden so I don't have any business there. I think it's safe to assume that only all you Grey Wardens, and possibly Wynne, are going to be heading out there." Derek chuckled.

"Yeah, besides, there are bound to be more darkspawn stragglers there. It'd be safer for the rest of you to stay at camp than to follow us."

"Was...was the fight at Ostagar really that bad?" I asked. Derek stopped his carving and looked at me. I looked away in mild embarrassment.

"Has Eren told you anything about it?"

"A bit. He told me how you guys had to go light the beacon but the tower was overrun by darkspawn. By the time you lit it, it was already too late and Loghain abandoned the field."

"I always had a feeling about that man. He said something to Cailan that shook me. I told Duncan about it but he just waved off my concerns. You don't get to be my age by luck alone in this world. I've always had a healthy dose of paranoia thanks to working for the Carta. Something about that man Loghain rubbed me wrong. That feeling got stronger as we passed the bridge toward the tower. Even if we got there in time, I'm not sure we would have won. Bah! There's no time to think about what if's only the now. Right now we're going to Ostagar to get some evidence that a traitor gave us. I have a feeling we're going to have to use it."

"You have a lot of feelings."

"Missy sometimes you have to listen to your gut because your gut is the only thing that might be keeping you alive." Derek said. I nodded and we went back to our things. As I was shining my armor, it made me remember all those times that Eren tried to get me to quit by shining all of his armor. Thinking about Eren made me think about the dream. I still don't know how to approach the subject. I understand that he had the dream of the Castle with everyone in it because that's what he wished for, but marrying me? That was another subject. I decided to push it out of my mind. We'll have that conversation eventually, for now, I had to focus on shining my armor.

I started to sing a spanish song underneath my breath and everyone started to stir as well. Those that tried to sleep for more, Alistair and Talen specifically, got kicked by Derek to get moving for their laziness. Time to pack up. I buckled up and made sure I had everything. We were still right next to Lake Calenhad. It would be a couple of more days until we reached Flemeth.

Which meant that we had to pass Lothering. I wasn't looking forward to it. I remembered the Dragon Age 2 opening. A lot of people still stayed and many people died there.

-/-

I started to hum again during our journey. I didn't like silence when we were traveling. When it was too quiet, I just wanted to break it. There were times were I would just whisper, 'It's too quiet!' But since I was able to sing or hum, I decided that would be best to fill the silence. Humming worked best. I took a glance at Eren. I still haven't been able to talk with him privately. I really wanted to ask him about the whole fade dream. I may be oblivious, but I'm not stupid. Much. Sometimes. On occasion. Everyone has their brain farts right?

"What are you singing?" Leliana asked.

"Humming. Singing would use words. Just a song I remember."

"I did hear you sing." Zevran said, coming out from the back of the group to my ear.

"What!?" I squeaked. Leliana started to laugh. My cheeks started to flush again. Curse you cheeks!

"You were singing an Antivan song. You really didn't think I was sleeping, were you?"

Actually I did. "Oh, well..."

"You have a lovely voice. I do not see why you don't sing more often."

"Well I grew up with my mom. She was in a choir and even joined a festival that showcased it. She was pretty harsh on my singing when I was young. Then my brother said that I sucked. Even later on in life, people didn't want me to sing. It's a sore wound so I try not to sing too loud." Having people you care about tell you that your singing isn't up to par cuts into your soul. I thought I was decent enough.

"You must have confidence in yourself. I like your voice."

"So do I. What song was that again?" Zevran came up on my left side. I started to sing it a bit. I got a few looks from everyone. It made me flush more. I wasn't used to getting attention. "Mmm, lovely. Though your accent is a bit odd."

"Someone called me a country bumpkin. I can't help it. I have a slight lisp. It gets worse when I start speaking a lot in Antivan." Leliana giggled.

"What more do you know?" I sang a few songs, which made everyone glance at me. The only one that really stared at me was Eren. My cheeks became really red and I felt embarrassed but Leliana was a sincere person. I don't think she would tell me anything but the truth. It made the walk go by faster at least. I taught a few to Leliana and then she would sing a few.

"You two remind me of the children that sang of the chant." Wynne chuckled.

"You all sang the chant in the Tower?" I asked.

"It was more of a discipline thing and also to remind us about how are magic was dangerous." Talen said.

"They are always trying to find new ways to make one feel guilty about magic." Morrigan said.

"Eh, it wasn't all that bad." Talen said.

"So you sang too?" I asked.

"I'm not about to sing. If you want someone to sing the chant, ask Wynne."

"I might be a little rusty especially after so long."

"We have singers in Par Vollen as well, to make our work more efficient." Sten said.

"Like chanting? In old times, where I came from, they would use drums for a beat to work to. Then they would go up in tempo to make work faster."

"Are there any songs you used to listen to Derek?" Leliana asked.

"The only songs that I heard were from the taverns. Mostly drunk men who had lost all their senses. They sounded like a dying nug most of the time." Derek said.

"Do you know a few songs?" Wynne asked.

"Heh! You're not going to get me singing that easy."

Then the GWs stopped and Alfred started to growl. That meant that there were Darkspawn coming. They started to run along the path and we found the darkspawn. They were on top of a hill and had vantage point. Six darkspawn archers, an emissary, and three genlocks coming at us. Derek rampaged through, flinging a few genlocks on the ground. He pounded the guts out of them. Eren and Alistair cut through a line and were going for the archers. Attack spells from Morrigan, healing from Wynne, fire spells from Talen who would occasionally through in a healing spell. Leliana stayed behind with them, slowing down the archers. It was going good.

Alfred and I killed all the darkspawn that hit the ground. I had to make sure to not to get the blood on me. I know that the blood won't taint me unless it enters my bloodstream but you can never be too careful. I also had a few close calls with some arrows whizzing by head. The emissary was giving the GWs some trouble. It managed to freeze Derek, paralyze Alistair, and burn Sten. I crouched and tip toed fast, going behind the emissary. Zevran right on my tail. I ran up and I hit it on the back of the head as quickly as I could. The good thing about knuckles is that it can dent helmets. Zevran twirled right in front and decapitated the emissary. Battle over and won. Wynne and Talen went around to heal the GWs. I flicked the blood off my daggers before sheathing them. Zevran twirled his daggers and winked at me. I just rolled my eyes and shook my head.

"Why must you be so difficult, mi niña hermosa?" Zevran said as we started to walk along the path again.

"Probably because I'm married?" Alistair did a double take.

"Wait a minute. You're married?!" Alistair said in disbelief.

"Oh I never mentioned it? Man, maybe I should shine my ring, looks like it lost its luster."

"Aren't you a little young to be married?" Derek said, wiping the blood off his hammer.

"I'm older than I look."

"One must wonder then, why are you here and not with your family?" Morrigan said, twirling a jewel she probably found on one of the bodies.

"Short story? I don't remember how I got to Ferelden and I haven't even seen my family for 3 years."

"Then why the loyalty? Surely your husband has moved on for not knowing what has become of you." Zevran said.

"Oh yeah, I totally agree with you. He probably already found someone else. The thing is I still have hope that one day I'll be able to go home. If he has someone, I'm not going to blame him. 3 years is a long time for a man. Besides, even if I can't be with him, I can at least see my kids."

"You have children?!" Alistair again.

I did the whole Jackie Chan pose. "Why is that so hard to believe?"

As we started to walk up the hill, I saw Wynne trailing behind the group. At this point, I remembered why this scene was so familiar. That's when Wynne collapsed on the ground

"Wynne!" I ran to her side while the others stopped. Talen went by me and his hands glowed green with healing energy. She shook her head at him as I helped her up. Wynne was pinching the bridge of her head.

"Don't get up too quickly. Did you get hit?" Talen asked.

"Is she ok?" Leliana said coming toward us.

"Oh I just...fell." Wynne said, leaning her weight toward me.

"A master of the obvious." Morrigan said.

"I am fine. For a moment, I thought that was the end."

"Don't talk like that Wynne, we just barely begun our adventure together!" Alistair said. Wynne chuckled.

"I'm fine dear. It's alright Talen, I can keep going. I might have overestimated how much magic I used. We should continue." Wynne said. I let go of her but I made sure to stay at her side to make sure she didn't fall again. Alfred settled on the other side, her hand on top of his head. I could tell she was leaning on him.

"Soo, you have kids?" Alistair said, trying to make the situation lighter.

"Yes I do. I have a son and a daughter. They would be 5 years and 4 years old."

"It's just surprising that someone like yourself would have children."

"Someone like myself?" I said, raising my eyebrows.

"Well you know the whole stabbity stab with your daggers and knocking the teeth out of darkspawn mouths. You just don't seem, well, motherly."

"Oh, wrong thing to say friend." Derek said, shoving him. My eye twitched for a quick second before I kicked Alistair in the shin.

"Ow!"

"That's for insulting me."

"No I didn't mean to, I just meant-"

"Stop digging yourself even further. You're embarrassing even me!" Talen said.

-/-

We had settled for camp once it became dark. Talen was worried about pushing Wynne too long. He kept going over to her side to check up on her. Wynne kept shooing him away though. Talen gave her a thoughtful look before letting it drop. I had a feeling he might have known about the spirit friend that Wynne had but I wasn't sure. I was on soup duty again. I had a feeling I wasn't going to be given any other duty in food besides this for a very long time. I got the bowls and started to pass them out. I placed one bowl in my tent before going over and giving one bowl to Sten.

"Why are you here?"

"Excuse me?" I said, after giving Sten his food.

"Women are priests, artisans, farmers or shopkeepers. None of them have any place in fighting." Oh it was this conversation. "Not only that you have children. Shouldn't you be tending to them?"

"You're right I should be. I shouldn't even be here risking my life fighting. I shouldn't be going up against who knows what in the coming days. But there are things that I must do. I won't stop until I complete them. I won't stop, not until I complete my mission."

"That is a commendable character but why are you here?"

"Because I can't go home."

"Why do you wish to be a man?"

"I don't wish to be a man Sten. I have a promise to fulfill. An obligation I have to see through the very end. I won't be able to rest until I complete it. You understand right?"

"Yes but women should not be fighting."

"In all over conversations, you would be right."

"So you agree with me, but you will still fight to complete your responsibility. That is...admirable."

"Thanks, now eat your soup. You need to gain back all you lost after nearly starving to death."

"I am-"

"I know, I know, you're fit enough to fight but the fight would be a lot more easier if you got back all your muscles and weight. Now eat." Sten nodded. I went back to check on the soup and I saw Talen and Derek were eating like their life depending on it. They were horking it down like it was their last meal. They should at least watch their manners. I shook my head and sat down to eat my share. I saw Eren tending to his armor, Alfred laying down next to him. His bowl was untouched. I ate quietly, listening to the fire. I felt someone staring at me but I didn't look around. After I was done, I got a bone and threw it at Alfred. He was glad for it and I sat down next to Eren.

"You've barely touched your food. Go on and eat. It's not good to go to sleep on an empty stomach."

"I'll eat it when I'll eat it."

"Eren you eat it now while it's still warm or you'll get cold soup. I know you don't like cold soup. You won't eat it and then you'll go to bed hungry.

"Then I'll just get a slice of bread and cheese." I groaned and I took the armor away from him.

"Eat. Now." Eren scowled and, yep that was a blush. Alfred shoved his nose in my hand and I scratched him behind the ear. Derek belched really loudly.

"Awesome." Talen said. I tossed the bone for Alfred a couple of times before going to my tent. I unfurled my roll in the tent and started to take off my armor. I heard the flap open and I saw Leliana coming in.

"Oh! I didn't see you in here." Leliana said.

"Don't worry about it. We're both girls." I got my black outfit on. I saw come in and sit on her side. Leliana started to fidget with her fingers and kept looking at me then away.

"May I ask a personal question?"

"Go ahead."

"All these years and you've never..."

"Never what? Had a cat? Go traveling? Looked at the stars? Made soup? I make good soup." Leliana giggled.

"No, well, you know what I mean?"

"Wow, you really want me to answer huh? Hah, ok. No, I've had no trysts since I came here. There I said it. So sad. Very lonely."

"Not even with Eren?" My eyebrows crunched in confusing.

"What? Me and Eren are totally not like 'that.' He's like my boss or my brother. It's weird."

"Oh? I've seen the way he looks at you. Every single time we go into combat, his eyes stay on you. When we are traveling, he always makes sure where you are. Have you not noticed?" I looked at her for a second before looking away. That was all she needed to know. "You have noticed!"

"Hey, Hey...Hey. Just because I've noticed doesn't mean anything ok? I don't like him that way. End of story but, since you brought it up, I remember that I need to go talk to him."

"Sure. Just talk." I smacked her with a pillow and she just laughed. I got out and there were only a few out. Zevran, Alistair, Morrigan and Eren. I looked toward Wynne's tent. I hoped that she was feeling better. Zevran gave me another wink as I headed over to where Eren still sat. His bowl was finally empty.

"Eren. I was wondering if we could talk. Probably in private."

"No."

"Ok, wait, what?"

"I know what you want to talk about. This is not the time."

"Not the time? Not the time. My face could be decorating a hurlock's shield tomorrow. We either talk now, or never." Eren scowled slightly. He looked around at the camp then looked at me. He sighed.

"Fine. Follow me." He led me out of the camp and into the forest. It grew really dark once we were away from the fire, but the two moons gave pretty good light from where we were. Eren stopped, looked at me, leaned against a tree, and crossed his arms. "So we're here. We're talking."

"Alright, well, here's the thing. You remember what happened in the fade? Sloth demon putting everyone to sleep and all? You remember how I came into your dream? I was your bride Eren. We got married in your dream and I want to know why." Eren didn't look at me. "You have to tell me what that was all about Eren."

"I don't have to tell you anything."

"You're acting like a brat."

"And what exactly do you want me to say?" Eren said loudly.

"I just want to know what that dream meant." Eren groaned loudly and started to pace in front of me. He kept taking glances at me, groaning, mumbling to himself. I stood there waiting for an answer. He stopped abruptly and looked me in the eye.

"I love you and I have for a very long time. Out of everyone that I have met in my life, you are the only one who has challenged me. You never followed my orders and you never lied to me. At first it infuriated me that you didn't listen to me like all the other servants. Then you just...grew on me. I started to watch you grow in front of my eyes from a servant, to a friend, to a warrior, to someone I could rely on. I saw your strength, how you always accomplished things with all your heart. I started to become attracted to you. I should have stopped there. I knew I should have forgotten about it but you were always there! In front of me, the one thing I wanted to have and yet couldn't! You overtook me Nia! My mind was constantly thinking about you, my heart was full of you! My dreams of you didn't make things better at all. I dreamt of a life with just the two of us, my family looking in pride and happiness but this doesn't matter anymore! None of it matters anymore!" Eren shouted at me.

This all left me kinda speechless. Ok, I was speechless and very, very red. I never got confessions like that at all. Maybe once, a while ago. Actually I'm not sure, alright I'm getting off topic again. I opened my mouth several times but nothing came out. I almost wanted to pinch myself to see if I was still dreaming back in the circle.

"I didn't want you knowing any of this. I wanted to bury these feelings as soon as possible and now they were shoved where you could see it all. Then the demon gave me what I wanted the most. He gave me you, he gave me my family back, and then you destroyed it when you came into the dream."

"Eren I had to get you out of there. That was all just a dream, you would have ended up like Niall! You would have ended up stuck in the fade until your real body wasted away." I said. Eren had that faraway look in his eye again.

"It was a dream I didn't want to be taken away from." We had a tense and awkward silence that I didn't know how to break. "I love you. I never wanted you to know."

"But why Eren? You knew I was married and that I had kids! You knew that I wanted to go back to my husband and back home so why? And how? I don't understand!" I said.

"You can't stop the heart once it has chosen. Have you never experienced that?" Eren said. I looked away. I have experienced that before not that I would have admitted it to Eren. He looked at me with pure sadness in his eyes, before they became steely. "Now you know...I'm going to bed."

"Eren wait."

"This conversation is over Nia. Good night." Eren said, walking away from me. I didn't know what to feel about this at all. When did this happen is what I wanted to know. I mentally kicked myself. Now I went ahead and complicated things. I leaned against a tree before my mind started to get confused about it all. I just couldn't understand it but at the same time I understood all of it. Sometimes you can't help yourself falling for someone, even if you're not allowed to. I groaned and banged my head against the trunk of the tree. I wasn't able to understand all these confusing emotions. I started to get angry. I started to kick the tree and let out a bunch of creative curses. I did it until I got really tired and my toes hurt. I groaned really loudly and heard someone crunch a branch behind me.

"So I'm guessing things didn't go well?" Alistair said. I scowled and kicked a rock out of the way.

"No things didn't go well. I just managed to alienate the closest person I have all because of something stupid that I couldn't let go. God, this sucks."

"What were you talking about anyway?"

"Nunya."

"What?"

"Nunya business." I said before going back to my tent. Long entry. I have to be careful. I only have a few pages left. Night.

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**Ok short chapter, but hey it's something! So i got my knuckle reattached, but it shifted in its bandage and now...let's just say it looks gross and kinda cool at the same time. 4 reviews! :DDDDD You guys are just so awesome! Have a virtual cookie!**

**Shout out to godofkh4os and justme2134 for following/favoriting this story :D**

**redrosemary: **_Good eye! Yes it is a spirit of protection or faith. :3  
_**A. Zareth: **_I know right? Zevran sorta chases everyone, but he does it with class and style. Trust me from watching my spanish cousins work, I know how they tend to woo. I actually get Zevran's mannerisms from them! Like they say, write what you know :3 Thank you for reading bytheway!  
_**Smugget: **_I'm so glad you're enjoying yourself!_ :D  
**ElyssaCousland: **_OH no! I'm not going to make you cry anymore! I'll make double sure to get it right!_


	14. Scarier than Spiders

**WARNING: RELIGIOUS CONTENT AHEAD. IF THIS MAKES YOU UNCOMFORTABLE, THEN PLEASE SKIP THE SCENE WHERE NIA WANTS TO DO SOMETHING FOR EREN. Thank you and read on.**

* * *

9:30 Harvestmere 4th

We have passed by Lothering.

Last night wasn't a good night. I was tossing and turning in my cot. I couldn't get to sleep. I closed my eyes for a second and then opened them again. I looked out of the tent and it was dark out. I groaned and rubbed my face. Alistair was taking watch this time. I was tired but I didn't want to try to go to sleep again. I got out of my tent.

"Oh you're awake? It's still early."

"I can't sleep even though I'm so tired." I said, rubbing my eyes.

"Was it because of the argument with Eren?" I gave him a side long look before I sighed.

"It wasn't necessarily an argument more like a heated discussion."

"Do you really think I'd fall for that?"

"Yeah, that was a bad one." I said before coming over and sitting next to Alistair. "You really want to know what we were talking about?"

"We have time before daybreak."

"Ok so I was able to move around in the dream world when we were taken by the Sloth demon."

"Yes I remember seeing you and...Duncan."

"Sorry about that. I went into Eren's dream and...he dreamt of Castle Highever which was expected. What I didn't expect is that...we were...together in his dream."

"It was hard to believe you weren't at the start with the whole hugging out at Lothering and Eren talking about you all the time in Ostagar."

"What? Eren talked about me?"

"Almost the entire time he was there. He didn't want to be conscripted. Eren told me he was only there to warn his brother of Howe's treachery. When Duncan used the right, Eren fought with him. He told him that he had someone waiting for him back at Lothering and that he couldn't stay. Duncan didn't allow him to leave, Grey Warden power you know. While Eren was with us, all he ever talked about was you. 'Nia is waiting for me. Nia is worried about me. I have to get to her.' He told me stories of how you came to be under his employ, of the two years that he trained you, and the day in the winter when you possibly killed a man. Eren told me that was a great regret of his." I stared into the fire, not knowing what to do with this information. "I'm sorry if I offended you when I thought you two were together initially."

"No, it's ok. With the way you talked to be about what Eren said, there was a good reason why you'd think that."

"But you don't feel the same way for him, do you?"

"No. He's like a brother or a really good guy friend. I've never once thought about him romantically. He said that he loved me because I didn't bow to his every word. I actually fought him. He only loved me because he couldn't control me."

"I think there's more to it than that."

"Well yeah he explained everything last night. It just boggles my mind. Why? I mean, I know why, but why? Why me? He knew I was trying to get to my family. He knew that I was married and had kids. He knew that I only thought of my husband."

"Sometimes you can't control who you fall in love with." Alistair said. I groaned and rubbed my head.

"Yeah, I know. This makes this complicated between us. Eren said that he didn't want me to know but now I do. The thing is what do I do now? The only thing that can come to my mind is reject him so he can move on. I don't want things to be weird between us but, at the same time, I don't want to hurt him."

"Out of this one person is going to be hurt. You can't change that." Alistair said. I sighed.

"Yeah. Stupid Eren..." I mumbled. Alistair chuckled. "So, um, thank you for hearing me out. I know you didn't have to."

"Oh don't worry about it. I'm always here with an ear out in case you want to tell me anything else." Alistair said. I smiled softly and I saw that night was starting to retreat. "Well, it's best to start to wake everyone to get going. We should be reaching Lothering soon. Hopefully we'll be able to restock there." I looked away. Lothering was gone but no one else knew that. Alistair started to wake everyone up. I went back into my tent to wake up Leliana. I took out my armor to put on when Leliana kept giving me a look.

"What is it?"

"I heard some shouting last night."

"Me and Eren got into a fight, it was no big deal. It'll settle down in time."

"He confessed to you didn't he?" I gave her a look of incredulity while I put on my armor.

"You were listening in weren't you?" Leliana gave me a sly smile. "You don't say anything ok?"

"It will spread. Our group is small."

"Shush Leliana, we got ground to cover." Leliana laughed at me. We rolled up our tent and packed everything away. Alfred looked at me while walking beside Eren. He whined as we all go underway.

"Lothering should be our next stop. We'll restock there then head our way toward Flemeth's hut." Talen said. I looked down when he said that. Lothering was gone, and will be gone for the next several years. We kept walking, the clouds coming in. I wondered if we were going to find any rain during our journey. I yawned as we got closer and closer to Lothering. I recognized the sign posts.

"Did you sleep well mi niña?"

"Not really. I kept tossing and turning."

"There! We should be...close." Leliana said as she ran up the hill that overlooked the town. She fell silent. Talen and the GWs looked at each other while going up the hill. Alfred whined loudly, his ears down, and his tail in between his legs. I was the last one up. Out in the distance was a darkness that I was able to feel from where we were standing.

"Lothering..." Talen whispered.

"It's gone." Derek said plainly. Leliana's eyebrows were furrowed and her eyes welled up with tears.

"The blight reached Lothering and destroyed it. Twas expected considering how close twas to Ostagar." Morrigan said.

"We'll need to go around it then. Even I can feel the taint from here." Derek said. Everyone quietly agreed. They all followed Derek and Eren. Leliana was still looking to the distance. I came up and held her hand. She squeezed it strongly, letting the tears drop.

"...I knew that Lothering would fall...the darkness was like a plague only following the refugees..."

"People survived Leliana."

"...but there are those that stayed..." I stayed quiet.

"Come on, we have to keep going. The Blight is going to get worse. The faster we move, the more people we can save." Leliana nodded and I led her away from there. She didn't let go of my hand for a while.

We left Lothering and the group became silent for the destroyed town. I could only imagine how the Hawke family got out of there. We kept on walking until the GWs stopped and Alfred growled. Darkspawn. Leliana let go of my hand. We all gathered in a ball, our backs to each other. I heard a growl come from the shadows. Sten shouted as the first rogue got the jump on him. Five more followed suit. Leliana grabbed her longbow and hit the darkspawn with it before grabbing an arrow, nocking it, and shooting it straight in their face. I got one in an uppercut before Zevran cut open their throat. Sten had decapitated one, Alistair and Eren got one in between both of their shields. The last one got mauled by Alfred.

"There will be no mercy for you creatures." Leliana said coldly.

"Come on, we're losing daylight." Derek said. He ran us harder and we got farther and farther away from Lothering. Once it became dark, we kept on traveling. Talen had made a few torches for us to reach Ostagar as soon as we could. Eventually Eren called the traveling off. I heard the water of a creek near us. It was a bit chilly but a bath was still a bath. Leliana was silent and I sighed. I grabbed the soap and tapped Leliana's shoulder.

"Come on. We won't get a chance to get a bath anytime soon." Leliana nodded. "Hey we're going to take a bath, anyone who tries to peek, gets castrated." Leliana giggled at that one. I saw the creek and dipped my fingers in the water. "Ooh, it's cold. Well, water is water."

"Thank you." Leliana said quietly.

"Hey, what are friends for right? You helped me out of a dark time in Lothering. I wanted to do the same for you too. Now, let's get undressed and wash away the filth." Leliana laughed. We stripped down and dipped ourselves into the water. "OH that's cold!" Leliana laughed and splashed me. I splashed back as we had our fun.

"Do you have the soap?"

"Yep, here you go. It's just going to get colder from here on out huh?"

"Yes. It should start snowing very soon."

"Ooh! Look I think I saw some scales! You think I can catch them?"

"You might as well try." Leliana said, washing herself off. I managed to catch a few fish and toss them on the bank. I heard a branch snap in the woods.

"Zevran if that's you, I'm going to make you a eunuch." We heard an antivan swear. Leliana and I looked at each other before laughing again.

"Here."

"Thanks."

"May I ask a question?"

"Leliana, you don't have to ask permission, just ask."

"How did it go with Eren last night?"

"Man you really want to know don't you?" She gave me this innocent look. I just shook my head.

"He confessed to me."

"He did?"

"Yep."

"What did you say?"

"I couldn't say anything. He stopped the conversation before I could say anything. I want to talk to him again but I'm not sure how I would bring it up now. We'll see if he's up to talking before we go to Ostagar. Ah nice and clean. Here's the towel. I'm going to try to get some more fish." I got about five more. Leliana gave me the towel and I dried myself off and put on my black clothes. "Let's go to camp shall we?" Leliana agreed and we took the fish to camp.

"Hey, I nabbed us some dinner."

"Good. I'm starving." Talen said, by the fire. I had him help me put sticks through the fish to let them cook near the fire. I looked around the camp and I noticed someone that wasn't there. Morrigan was gone.

"Where's Morrigan?"

"She had some business to attend to apparently." Derek said. "Turned into a raven while you two were having fun and flew off."

"Huh." She probably already knew we were going to meet her mother again. She couldn't be with us if we did kill her or else Morrigan would be taken over, maybe. I took a look at the fish and noticed that Zevran was by Wynne. I stood up and went over to make sure Wynne didn't 'accidentally' kill him.

"But it is a marvelous bosom. I have seen women half your age who have not help up half as well. Perhaps it is a magical bosom?"

"Is there someone you haven't hit on yet?" I asked.

"Jealous, mi niña? Do not worry, you hold a special place en mi corazón." I rolled my eyes and shook my head.

"Wynne, how are you feeling?"

"I'm feeling much better. Thank you for asking."

"That's good. Zevran can you really stop looking at me like that?"

"Wet hair, tight clothes? I might as well enjoy it while I can."

"If you keep doing that, I'm going to knock your teeth out. Then what would be able to do?"

"Well without teeth I could-"

"Nope! Stopping you, right there!" I said. Zevran just shrugged. The fish were cooked and passed around. The group was silent. They were all probably thinking about what happened to Lothering. Leliana and I went to our tent for extra rest.

(I found myself snuggling into Leliana again. I need a teddy bear.)

9:30 Harvestmere 4th Early Morning

Did I say it was hard to walk in a forest? It really was. Roots everywhere, bushes with thorns, being poked by branches, there was no respite. I snagged my foot on a root and grabbed at the first person nearest me. It was Zevran. I landed on top of him.

"There are more private ways to get my attention mi niña."

"Urgh, that was an accident!" I said, getting up right away, dusting myself off. Talen was snickering in the background and I saw Eren scowl at Zevran for a second before continuing on his way.

"Are you sure we're going the right way? This doesn't seem familiar at all." Talen said.

"What you'd expect? We hightailed it out of here as soon as we could. You really thought I was looking at the sodding flowers on the ground?" Derek said. Truthfully, I wouldn't know if we were going in circles. This is Flemeth. She might be confusing us on purpose. That was a frightening thought.

"Do you think this is the Flemeth of the legends?" Leliana wondered.

"She was powerful enough to pick up 4 Grey Wardens from on top of the tower. Even if she wasn't Flemeth, she's still very powerful." Eren said. Well, look at that he decided to say something! Alfred kept sniffing around. I hoped that he would find some scent to find. But nothing so far.

"It feels like we've been walking in circles." Alistair mumbled. "I'm starting to feel another hole opening up in my socks. Wynne?"

"Yes Alistair?"

"Will you be able to fix my sock when we set up camp again?"

"Oh you don't need me anymore Alistair? I'm so hurt."

"If he won't be needing you, I am glad to fill his position."

"Zevran, I do have pointy things I can use."

"Why must you be so difficult? Surely after so many long years without a man's touch-"

"Ok I'm not hearing anything! La, la, la, la!" Alistair said. Eren stopped the group. It was a bit swampy with ponds scattered about but there was the hut. I felt my stomach drop to the floor. I felt like there was something predatory in there. I unconsciously wrapped my arms around myself. We made our way in front of the hut and knocked. There was no response. We knocked again and nothing.

"Maybe she's not in?" Alistair wondered.

"Possibly." I said.

"I don't think that's the case." Talen said.

Derek was about to go knock again when the door creaked open. That was when I felt an enormous presence. It was as if something extremely powerful was looking right through me. I heard Alfred whine right behind us. I looked behind us and there was Flemeth. She was old with tight wrinkles but there was a twinkle in her eye of something far older. It scared me. I felt goosebumps all over my arms and in the back of my neck. Alfred was in a submissive position right next to her.

"Ah, I was wonder when you would return." Flemeth said. She gave Alfred a light nudge with her foot. He got up and walked toward us. His ears were down and his tail was in between his legs.

"Let me guess, you were expecting us?" Alistair asked.

"If I was expecting you, then I would have answered the door." Flemeth cackled. Yes she cackled. "I knew you would return, but I did not know when. If you did, it would be for something of great importance."

"We have evidence in Ostagar that pertains to the war." Eren said. Talen shifted on his feet.

"Is that so? Then I may have yet help to give you yet. It would be best to set up camp. You will be here for longer than you originally intended." Flemeth said. So she went back inside her hut and we started to set up camp. I kept looking over to her hut. There was something dangerous in there, something that wanted to eat me. At least that's how I felt. My hands felt clammy and my wrists kept pulsating with pain. I set up the tent for me and Leliana but my eyes couldn't stop from straying over to where Flemeth was. I was actually so distracted that I didn't notice Talen creep over to where I was.

"Boo!"

"Wah! Talen! Don't scare me!" So then I punched him on the shoulder. He sulked away rubbing where I hit. Flemeth finally came out of her hut and came toward the camp.

"I see that my Morrigan is not with your group."

"She's preoccupied with something." Talen said. Flemeth smirked. Oh yeah, she knew.

"Let me be clear; I do not care what you find in Ostagar for that pertains to only your group. I do have some help to give to the Grey Wardens and to one other." Flemeth and my eyes finally connected. I looked away, trying to roll out my cot into the tent.

"Come here girl." Flemeth said. I fidgeted with my fingers. My eyes stayed downward.

"Why do you want to talk with Nia?" Eren wondered, getting in between me and Flemeth.

"She holds a great part in this world, more than she even realizes. Do not worry, your help will come."

"And what do you want for this help?" Derek asked, crossing his arms.

"There is an irregularity standing right in front of me. That is repayment enough." All 4 of looked wondered about what was she talking about. I didn't want to say anything.

"I-It's an honor to meet you Flemeth." I finally said.

"Why are you being so formal? She's just a witch." Talen said. You have no idea what you're messing with. She cackled again.

"Tis that same sensitivity which has saved you life numerous times. Come, you will be first." Oh shit. Flemeth started to make her way toward her hut and I was right behind her. I was stopped by Eren when he grabbed onto my arm.

"Don't be afraid to shout for help if anything happens." I nodded and followed Flemeth inside the hut.

The second I passed through that door, I knew I wasn't in the same reality anymore. There was some sort of blurriness that came over my senses. It felt almost like the fade, but it wasn't the fade.

"Sit down child." So I did on a stool right next to the door. She had this playful grin, like a cat about to pounce on a mouse. "You must have many questions."

Tons. Except my mouth didn't want to work. Come on, stop being stupid and speak!

"How did I get here?" Her eyebrow rose.

"You do not remember? Twas a curious thing to behold another spirit, from another world drag you into this one. Your spirit friend was strong enough to tear open the fade. Tis what brought you here."

"Halo?"

"Is that the name you put on him?" She cackled. "How literal." I felt my cheeks burn.

"You called me an irregularity. Someone that isn't supposed to exist but is existing at the same time. Halo said I'm here but I'm not here. What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means what it means girl. You are not supposed to be here. Halo dragged you in through the fade and into our world in order to keep you alive. Although he did not bring all of you. The you standing right here and now, is your very soul. You are existing between two worlds, but you are not supposed to be here. Your presence has already changed things, like the young noble who is standing outside. Or his nephew in the circle, the dwarf who was in Denerim, and others that will soon follow. All these changes have been made because you came into existence."

I gulped. I changed things, but were they for the better?

"That is for you to decide."

Woah, mind reading, that is scary. She cackled again.

"If I'm not supposed to be here, why am I staying here? Why can't I go home?"

"Because your spirit, Halo, is not strong enough. He will be soon. But there is a price."

Always a catch.

"Indeed. Your presence has made changes. Your disappearance will also cause this world to change. It may be the line between the Grey Wardens triumph or defeat. There will come a time where there will be a choice. The choice to go home, or the choice to stay. Whether either of those choices will be permanent will be your decision. But be warned girl, if you do not make a choice soon, it will be made for you."

"Why are you telling me this?"

"Because I believe that one day you will be useful to me."

Of course. Quid pro quo.

"Before I let you go, there is one last thing I must give you." She went into a drawer and took out what looked like a marble, but inside was a small glowing flame. It almost looked like a miniature oblivion gate. "The time will come when fate will call upon you again in the north."

The North...?

"The Free Marches?" She just gave me a knowing smile. Yep, would rather deal with a nest of spiders than to mess with her.

"Now run along. I need to talk to the others."

"Um, thank you very much." I put away the marble. I had to make sure to keep it somewhere safe. I opened the door and went outside. I let out a breath I didn't know I had.

"That was quick." Talen said. I looked at the hut and at them. I didn't know how much time has passed, but all of this reminded me of xxxHolic. Flemeth is the dimensional witch now. Flemeth motioned for the other 4 to follow her. Eren gave me one look of worry and went inside. I went to my tent and sat down wordlessly.

"Are you alright? It looks like you've seen a spirit." Leliana said.

"That was the most mentally tiring thing I've ever done since dealing with my ex."

"What did she tell you?" Wynne asked. I was wondering if I should even tell them about what she said to me. I knew that they would eventually learn about where I came from. I would rather keep that a secret.

"She said that I'm not supposed to be here, and that I might be able to go home soon."

"Oh that's great news! You can be reunited with your family again!" Leliana said.

Yeah, but at what cost? I thought about this really hard. On one hand I could go home. I could see my family again, but what about here? What about everyone? I'm not one to leave things unfinished. Not only that I promised to look after Eren and Oren. Why must I be so caring? Why can't I be like other people and abandon them? I can't do that. Urgh! Extensional life crisis! I needed someone logical.

"Sten, I need your opinion and give me the whole unadulterated truth."

"Did you say-"

"No comments from the peanut gallery. Sten, I have a decision to make between my obligation and family. Whether to stay or go. I can't choose."

"You have already given me your answer."

"I did?"

"Yes. You have already said to me that you have a promise to fulfill. A responsibility to attend to and that you won't stop until you complete it. That was your answer." I groaned.

"You're right, my brain knows you're right but..."

"You want to go to your homeland. I understand." I looked at him, really looked at him. His eyes were looking out across the horizon. He would be the person who would understand. Out of all of us, me and Sten knew what it was like to be somewhere that wasn't home. We were somewhere that was so completely foreign and strange. Yet he stays to complete his mission. Even if he did get his sword back, he would stay.

But my heart can't catch up to my mind. Logically I would like to stay. To see this story to its end. But I want to see my kids so badly. Damn you heart, why must you torture me so!?

After about half an hour all of the guys came out again. Eren looked thoughtful, Talen had his lips pursed, Derek looked tired, and Alistair looked pissed.

"I will await your decision." Flemeth said and Eren nodded.

"We're going to go to Ostagar now. Stay here and stay safe."

"Wait. I want to go with you. I have unfinished business there." Wynne said. The GWs looked at each other. Eren sighed.

"Of course Wynne." I had a sinking feeling in my stomach, like something was going to wrong very, very badly. They started to walk off, so I decided to do something slightly uncharacteristic of me.

"Eren, wait."

"What is it?"

"Can..can I do something? I mean, it's mostly for me really, but it's for you too. It's just a bit, I mean, you don't have to believe in it or anything. It'll make me feel a little secure-"

"Nia..."

"Yeah, ok. Can I...can I do a prayer for you? For all of you? It will...it's just-"

"It's ok. I know." Of course Eren knew about my faith. It wasn't one thing that I kept from when we were together in the castle. I was more scared of the others.

"O-ok. Here's goes..." It was a long prayer but the words flowed out of my mouth. I remembered my mother reciting this to me. I remembered reading this in the bible. I remembered doing this once for Eren when he went to tackle smugglers. I did this so that he can come back. I did this because it gave me hope that he will be able to come back.

"In the name of the father," the forehead, "the son," the heart, "and the holy spirit." the chest. Amen." And he kissed my hand.

"We'll come back." So they were off. I let out a breath. Faith can only do so much.

"That...that was beautiful. What was that?" Leliana asked.

"It's what I believe in. It's my faith and my sanity. Sorry, I don't follow Andraste. It's the reason why I was so hesitant to do anything."

"Is that what you do then before you go to sleep and in the morning? You pray? And that little bit of silence before you eat?" Huh, looked like she did notice. I squirmed uncomfortably.

"Please Leliana, this is a very sensitive subject to her. It is better if we focus on other things, no?" Zevran said.

"It was a verse of beautiful rhetoric." Sten said. It made me feel better.

"Thank you."

Afternoonish

"Hmmm." We were playing a card game that Zevran introduced us to. I think it was called Diamond Back. The GW group hasn't come back yet. I wish I had a least a watch. I looked out to where they left. I hated being so worried. Zevran and Leliana kept their hands, while Sten took his out. I decided to play. Zevran won again.

"Yep, even after all of that I still don't understand how to play this game." I said.

"Neither do I." Sten said.

"Oh come now. Another game." Leliana said.

"Nope, I'm out. I'm going to check the river to see if I can find more fish." I set the cards down and followed the river out, away from the hut. I couldn't stop worrying and it was driving me crazy. The sun has started to dip lower. I felt a chill in the air. Not surprising since we were halfway through autumn. Winter was just around the corner.

I kept trailing the river, encountering a small waterfall with fishes trying to jump. I waded right where they were aiming at. It was a bit tricky to catch them at first, but I was able to snag two. I had to get more if I was going to feed everyone.

I was on my sixth fish when I heard a very memorable sound. A bear roaring. It was the other side of the river. Coming towards me slowly. I gulped. I took off my armor just a while back. I didn't even have my daggers with me. I was completely vulnerable. So I just backed away slowly. Maybe the fish would distract him from me. Then I lost my balance and created a very loud splash.

It saw me and roared. I started to run, hearing its paws racing toward me. I didn't dare look back. Unfortunately I couldn't remember if I should play dead or hit it on the nose. Nope, I was too panicked to think. It was gaining ground. Mauled by bear? What a great way to go. I heard it roar in pain. I stopped and looked back. An arrow was sticking out of its eye. Sten came out of the bushes with his greatsword and did a few choice swings, bringing it down.

"Nia! Estás bien?" Zevran said, grabbing onto my shoulder.

"Fine...oh God that was scary. My legs feel like jelly." I laughed nervously. I sat on the ground. I didn't trust myself to start walking.

"Do not go anywhere without your weapons." Sten said, cleaning his blade.

"Oh yeah, I'll never will."

* * *

**Edited.  
Anyway, Dragon Age Inquisition anyone? :D I loved it so much! It has given me a lot more content to work with. I don't know about my readers, but this is going to be a series spanning all of dragon age. Yep I got my work cut out for me. 4 REVIEWS? Ah shucks guys, you spoil me! :D**

**Shout out to charm419, DMX0000, heartlessangel124, Dragon Watcher, and kali yugah for favoriting/following this story! :D**

**ElyssaCousland:** _LOL you aren't the only one thinking about that, but I decided to not follow the crowd on that. I do love my husband very much :3 I mean that is the whole point of this story, my SI wanting to go home.  
_**A. zareth: **_Oh cool! Then you totally know where I'm coming from. I try to work on the characterizations. I just hope that everyone is not too OOC.  
_**whrr. trudy: **_Thank you very much! I also enjoy your reviews :D  
_**Guest: **_I try not to put in songs, it's actually against FF . net rules because of the whole 'who owns what' thing. I try to balance my interacting of characters, so sometimes he won't get too much screen time._

**The review system is there so that we writers can get feedback on various things of our stories. I just love getting them :3**


	15. Soldier's Peak

Pretty Much Dusk

They came back from Ostagar.

I was already working on some bear and fish soup. I knew that when they came back, they would need some food. I doubt that there was anything they could pick from in Ostagar. Talen more than likely would want to eat something. Sten showed me how to dress the bear and make it into a spit over the fire. The bear attack made my adrenaline pumped but, now that I'm all calm, I felt extremely tired. I yawed for the umpteenth time stirring the soup and rubbed my eyes. The light was fading from the sky and all I wanted to do was sleep.

"If you are tired, you should retreat in the tent." Leliana noticed.

"And should you need my services, you all but need ask."

"No, I want to stay awake when they get here. And no Zevran. I won't be needing your services."

"Such a shame, Leliana would you-"

"Don't even think about it." I heard something bark in the distance but I didn't pay much attention to it before the barking became louder. I looked out to the direction where I heard it and I saw Alfred bound up toward us. "Hey Alfred! Where are the others?" I said, as his muzzle nuzzled my hands. As soon as I mentioned the others, Alfred whined and his ears became flat.

"They are back." Sten said. I saw them walking slowly back. All their faces looked older, sullen, and shadowed. From what I remember, they found Cailan's body and Duncan's swords. They also find the ogre that Duncan killed. I wasn't there though so I could only remember the events from the game. I couldn't even guess as how they reacted when they found everything.

"Is that food?" Talen asked quietly. I nodded and he got a bowl of the soup I made and sat down. He stared at the fire for a bit before starting to eat. Derek was carrying a big linen bag and set it down on the ground. It clattered loudly. I sat down with Alfred sitting down next to me. I gave him a bone from the bear and he walked over to Eren's side. All of them sat down with weariness. I wanted to ask, but I knew it was a sensitive subject.

"We were able to recover Cailan's armor, Duncan's swords, and the letters from the Orlesians. The chevaliers and the Grey Wardens of Orlais would have been sent here to help." Eren said, pouring himself a bowl. Derek took a big chunk of meat and ate in silence.

"We could have defeated them here, if they did come. But Loghain had to ruin everything." Alistair said. He said it with such hatred that it really surprised me.

"We don't know what could have happened Alistair." Wynne said.

"Yes we do! If we had only agreed on letting the Orlesian soldiers come and help, we could have pushed back the darkspawn! Cailan wouldn't have died, all those people wouldn't have died and Duncan..!" He gritted his teeth and walked away from the camp. Derek blew a low whistle.

"There's no time to be thinking what ifs. We lost and all those people died. We can't change that, but we can be there the next time. And this time, we'll show those monsters their own hearts." Derek said, ripping off a chunk of meat.

"Still, a part of the letter has me worried." Eren said.

"Oh come on, you're still not thinking about Cailin's offer of a political marriage between him and Celene?" Talen said. Eren just stood silent, the letter in his hand. I looked to where Alistair had wandered off. I knew of grief. Eren was also fighting it. The darkspawn and the danger kept our minds from reliving it, but the deaths of Castle Highever are hang over us like a black cloud. I stood up and gave Eren's shoulder a squeeze. He took my hand and squeezed back. I followed Alistair who was by the small creek near our camp. The fire was making small shadows near us. The night was just starting to settle. The few stars are coming out and the two moons were rising. I saw him in the little light by the river. He was taking off parts of his armor and cleaning it. Darkspawn blood washed away in the water. It was amazing how such a thing could taint things so horribly like radioactive material that people couldn't even live on the land it touched.

"Hey."

"Wha-! By the Maker, don't do that!" Alistair said, holding the plate near his heart. I let out a small snort from his reaction but then cleared my throat. I couldn't be laughing right now.

"You still think about him, don't you?" Alistair started to removed his breast plate. "Duncan." It was almost like he was moving mechanically.

"I...I know you never knew him. You really don't have to do this you know?"

"I know. I know I'll never have a chance to get to know him, but I do know grief. I know the pain when you lose someone close to you. I served the Couslands for 3 years. I knew the servants names, the guards...Oriana, Eleanor, and Bryce. They may not have been my family, but they were the closest thing I had one since I came to Ferelden."

"I-I'm sorry. I forgot that you and Eren-"

"It's ok. I'm still trying to get over it. Eren hasn't talked about since. I think he feels like he shouldn't grieve just yet. Or he's just bidding his time until we get to Howe, I'm not sure."

"Rendon Howe was the one who attacked?"

"Arl now, but yes, he was."

"But he was close to the Couslands, wasn't he?"

"Made it all the easier to backstab us." We had a silent moment, the water the only sound besides the small chatter behind us in the camp.

"Duncan...he took me in when I felt like I didn't belong everywhere. Oh, you should have seen it. All the other Grey Wardens. For the first time in my life, I knew what I wanted to do. I felt like I belonged. It was my home and Duncan was the father I never had...After all of this, I want to make something for him. Something that would honor him. I think he said he came from Highever."

"Well, if he's from there, I could give you a tour. I know that city like the back of my hand. Oh well, there's something new." Alistair gave a weak chuckle.

"Thank you. It felt good to talk about him."

"You're welcome. If you ever need to get all emotional, feel free to call on me. I'll make sure to keep my shoulder nice and clean so you can cry into it." He laughed that time. "Anyway, I should probably be getting back. Hopefully, we might still have some leftovers."

"With Talen and Derek around? Not a chance."

"Oh well, I stand to lose a few pounds."

"What? Don't say that! You look great!"

"I'm kidding Alistair."

"Oh, well. I mean it anyway." I rolled my eyes in amusement. I left him to clean up his armor. Eren, Talen and Derek were off in their little group talking. I looked in the soup pot. Yep, completely empty. Ah well, at least we had some meat left.

"Here, I save you a bowl." Thank God for Leliana. "How is he?"

"He's better. It's never good to bottle up grief like that." Man, I do make good soup. Wynne sighed. Camp became quieter. I saw Eren talk break off from Talen and Derek to go talk to Alistair. I yawned again after finishing my soup.

"Tired mi hermosa?"

"Yeah. I might as well get some sleep. I don't think we're going to be moving from here for now."

"Camping next to an incredibly powerful apostate? What could possibly go wrong?" Leliana joked. I let out a weak laugh. Depending on the GWs choices, a lot of things could go bad tomorrow. Now it's time for sleep.

9:30 Harvestmere 5th

I woke up in the fade again. I was lying on the ground, looking at the islands floating in the sky. I had no sensation of the ground underneath me even though I knew I was on top of it. Halo came around and hovered over me. It looked worried as I wasn't getting up. I could almost imagine a pair of hands hovering over me, not knowing what to do.

"Hey Halo."

It was fluttering around me, stuttering and not knowing what to do.

"I'm fine Halo." I said, sitting up. I looked around. The forest looked just like the one we were camped around, the path right in front of me. I didn't feel like going anywhere today. Talking with Alistair made him feel better, but it made me remember. The memories were fresh in my mind, the bodies of my friends, Oriana's death, Eleanor and Bryce staying behind. It hasn't even been a full months since the tragedy. My eyebrows furrowed and I bit my lip. I wanted to be strong but my failures were circling through my mind. I'm a self defeating person. I wanted to change something but I couldn't. I was only one person who spoke against a storm and the storm won. I took a shuddering gasp as the warm tears ran down my face. I saw Halo around, panicking, not knowing what to do.

I hugged myself and curled inward. The tears coming out and hitting the ground. I hiccuped as my feelings began pouring out. The bottle inside me was spilling again, too much of me has been piling inside. It had to come out and it came out in a torrent.

I wish I could have saved more people but, just like Derek said, there wasn't any time to be thinking about what ifs.

But the wound bled. So I cried because that's the only way this bottle can empty itself.

I woke up with tears in my eyes. Leliana wasn't in the tent this time. I must have slept longer than I should have. I wiped my eyes and took a deep breath. When I was done with my prayer, I came out of the tent. The GWs were still in their group talking in the morning. Sten, Leliana and I were the only ones awake. Alfred wasn't to be found. He was probably frolicking in the wilds.

"Good you're up. Don't bother with breakfast. The Grey Wardens and I have been talking about Flemeth since last night." Eren said.

"Morrigan told me that one of her mother's grimoire's was lost to her. I found it in the circle and gave it to her. She's been studying it since then and found a spell that allowed Flemeth live for a long time. You've heard of the daughter's of Flemeth?" Talen said.

"I doubt that hasn't."

"All of them are Flemeth. When she gets old, she takes a young girl who's talented with magic to eventually take over her body. Morrigan found this out through the grimoire." Derek said.

"There's a chance that Flemeth might take Morrigan's body in the near future. I can't allow that to happen." Eren said.

"So...what are you trying to say?"

"We're going to kill Flemeth." Alistair said. I blinked once, twice, looked around the camp. Leliana gave me a shrug and Sten just stared ahead.

"Are you serious? Flemeth is probably the most dangerous witch in Thedas and you're going to kill her?"

"We. It'll be hard, but we have made the decision. There is something she is plotting. We need to stop her." I glared at Talen and he looked away.

"If I die, I'm going to come back and kill you Talen. You better know what you're doing Eren."

"I'm sorry."

"Yeah you better be." Eren looked away as we started to pick up our camp. Zevran woke up a bit groggy and Wynne was already putting away her tent.

"Suit up Zevran. We're going to be battling Flemeth soon." I said, putting away everything in my pack.

"What do you mean?" Wynne asked.

"Eren told me that we're going to kill Flemeth. She's trying to possess Morrigan and Eren decided that Morrigan is more important."

"Of course Eren will choose la belleza negra." Zevran said, already putting on his leather armor.

"Flemeth possessing Morrigan?" Wynne wondered.

"If we leave her alone, she'll talk over Morrigan's body. It's the reason why Morrigan isn't. I know that face Wynne. You don't like it neither do I but the Grey Wardens have made their choice." I scowled after that. I had to play through the Morrigan romance for the trophy but out of all the party, she was the one I never felt close to. Especially how she leaves in the end. I checked my daggers and Leliana got her bow as well.

"Ready to add 'Defeated the stronger witch in Ferelden' on your lists of accomplishments?"

"I do not know if anyone will even remember this." Leliana smiled. We got everything packed up. The hut was right in front of us. Eren came toward me and grabbed my arm. He leaned closed so that no one would hear him.

"I'm sorry for the last day. If there is a time where we could talk privately...I would like to talk about that." I nodded. Eren flicked my forehead and I swatted his hand away.

Flemeth came out of her hut and crossed her arms, seeing all of us in our armor. A shiver passed through me. Here we go.

"Flemeth." Eren said.

"Yes?"

"We need your real grimoire."

"Oh? And I am guessing that Morrigan put you up to this task?"

"Yes. We know how you prolong your life." She cackled.

"That is an old, old tale from long ago. But enough of this, you want the Grimoire? Take it. Tell Morrigan that I am slain."

"You really don't expect Morrigan to believe us?" Talen said.

"There are many things we do in this world. Everyone lives on our beliefs. It's all we every do." Derek grunted. His fingers are getting twitchy just like mine.

"And what would you do if we let you live?" Derek said.

"Maybe I will surprise Morrigan later on in life. Maybe I will just watch what she does with her newfound freedom." Yep Dimensional Witch, except more evil. I could see the cogs turning in Eren's head.

"I'm sorry, but Morrigan will stay with us."

"Then she will earn what she takes. I would have it no other way." Flemeth said, going up to that familiar hill. Her body bathed in white, growing larger, and larger...and dragon time.

"Holy Jesus."

"Oh sod."

"The guys in Dust Town will get a kick out of this." Derek guffawed, taking his hammer in his hands.

Flemeth roared at us and I'm glad that I went to the bathroom prior to this. Alistair and Eren were the first ones up. They were keeping her preoccupied while Derek and Sten took her sides. Leliana was focusing her fire on her wings. Talen and Wynne didn't do much offensive spells. They had to keep up with the healing. Just a swipe from one of Flemeth's claws could tear you apart.

She beat her wings to create air flow which made Eren and Alistair fly back. She jumped to reposition herself and shot off a burst of flames toward Talen and Wynne. Talen and Wynne were able to make a barrier in time to shield themselves and Leliana. Sten and Derek got singed in the attack. Zevran and I were moving toward her hind quarters. Eren and Alistair got back up from where they flew off and attacking again. Flemeth swung her claws at them, keeping them at bay. Sten and Derek both moved toward her sides but she slapped them away with her wings. Zevran tried to reach her underbelly from behind, but she reared up, grabbed his leg when he was trying to run, and threw him into Wynne, Talen, and Leliana. I shanked her a few times before she kicked me square in the chest

I rolled down the hill into the swamp. I wheezed for a second and I felt my heart do a double tap before regaining it's original rhythm. I took a deep breath before I climbed up hill. As soon as I got up to her hindquarters, she let out a roar which pierced into my head.

She whipped her tail and hit almost all of us. Sten was able to stay standing but it didn't matter. Flemeth beat her wings again and started to fly. That's when I heard Alfred coming out of the forest. He leaped up into the air and clamped down on one of her wings. She roared in pain and was forced to land. Zevran had came up right next to me. We focused on hitting her legs and a bit of her wing. If Flemeth didn't have her wings, then she couldn't fly away. We all circled her around. Derek and Sten were focused on one leg while Eren and Alistair kept her preoccupied in the front.

Derek clipped her leg with a mighty swing, causing Flemeth to fall. Eren took his chance and grabbed onto Flemeth's neck. She thrashed around, her tail knocking me and Zevran into the swamp. I saw Eren hold onto her using his legs. He grabbed his sword and plunged it into her eye. He took it out and did one final stab on her skull.

Flemeth was dead. At least for the time being.

"Ugh, it's gonna take me days to scrub off the smell of wet dog." Zevran said, taking off the various plants that had clung to us.

"Yuck." We climbed the hill. There was a dragon corpse right in front of us. I pulled out the marble that she gave me. It was burning bright. Flemeth was still alive.

"Give me a second." Talen said, going into the hut.

"What are the chances that Flemeth could turn into a dragon?" Alistair said, wiping the sweat off his brow.

"Pretty high. She did get all of us off the tower." Derek said, spitting out some blood. Talen came out with a beige looking book.

"I got it."

"Let's go." Eren said. I took one final look at Flemeth.

"I hope whatever choice I make is the right one." I mumbled before following the rest, out of the wilds. We were never coming back here again. We retraced our steps and I found that getting back to the path was shorter than trying to go to Flemeth's. I smelled horrible, I needed a bath again. As we walked I heard a raven's cry. One single black raven came in front of the group before glowing and showing Morrigan.

"You are back. Were you successful?" Morrigan said. Talen came forward and gave her the grimoire.

"You failed to mention that your 'mother' was able to become a dragon. Made for one heart thumping battle though." Derek said.

"She was one for many forms. I cannot thank you enough for this. I shall start studying it immediately." Morrigan said. I knew the look on her face. She looked at Talen warmly.

"Y-You're welcome." Talen said. I saw his ears turn really red from the back of the group. Hopefully what Leliana said in game wasn't true about Morrigan's screaming. I would hate to be awake for that.

"It looks like romance has blossomed for two of our mages." Zevran said. "Hah to be young again."

"Romance is probably far from what she's thinking." I said.

"True. Our bellesa negra will probably just want to sink her claws into him, no?"

"Yep." Leliana giggled when she overheard us and Talen glared at me. It didn't really work since he was so red. We got back on the path and started walking. Derek got us all at an almost jog to go faster. Zevran and I stayed at the tail since we could tell that the group was turned off by our smell. We kept on the same jog until we saw Lothering again in the distance. We took the route that we walked before hand to stay away from it. We were able to have it behind us by the time the sun set. We set up camp near a river where Zevran and I tried wash our stuff.

"Ugh, what I would kill to have some decent soap to wash this stuff."

"My poor leather armor, ruined."

"Remind me to hit Eren over the head. I'm going to need to change again."

"I would make sure that no one would dazzle upon your naked form."

"Yeah, no. Zevran, I think I can manage by myself." I got my armor and walked back to camp. There was a wagon stationed near us and, for second, I though Bodahn came and found us again. Then I remembered that Bodahn has a cart not a wagon. I shrugged and went into my tent and changed into my other clothes. These ones didn't smell as bad at least. I got out and noticed Derek and Eren talking to a man that looked extremely familiar. Levi Dryden the guy who asks to clear his name. Leliana noticed me staring at their group.

"Someone you recognize?"

"I wouldn't say that. Man, and I was hoping for Bodahn and soap."

"Well we can't get all our wishes granted. I would to have a bowl of chowder and a lovely woman naked in my tent. Ah well, I only need the chowder if you would join me tonight." Zevran said, coming back from the river.

"Wow, do you have a book or something that tells you the different ways to ask a woman to bed? Or do you really come up with this yourself?"

"Is that a yes?"

"It's a no, Zevran."

"Ay mi niña hermosa, como quiebras mi corazón."

"Zevran, hands to yourself." He went back to his own tent, while I placed my armor near the fire so it could dry.

"Zevran still bothering you I take it?" Alistair said. I just shrugged. "If you want, I could make him stop bothering you."

"He's not bothering me."

"But he keeps asking you, to, you know? H-How is that not bothering you?"

"It's actually flattering, if a little annoying at times. It means, that I still got it!"

"That doesn't make any sense."

"If you knew anything about women Alistair, is that we don't make sense, period."

"Alistair, did Duncan ever tell you of a man named Levi Dryden?" Derek asked, coming up next to us near the fire.

"Hmm, no I don't recall anyone named that."

"Well he promised this guy something. Looks like we're going to go to Soldier's peak. Everyone Levi Dryden." Derek introduced him.

"Hello, and thank you for helping me on this personal mission of mine."

"We're going over to the abandoned Grey Warden fortress to clear his name. Maybe we'll find a few useful Warden items going over there." Derek said. "Make sure to sleep well tonight. Luckily Levi here will let us borrow his wagon. Much faster traveling. We're also going to be able to put in all the things we found back in Ostagar. Hopefully we'll find a good place for them."

Well, off to the abandoned fortress we go! But first sleep.

9:30 Harvestmere 10th

I decided not to include the past couple of days. It was mostly traveling, killing a few darkspawn, party banter, the usual. Not only that, this journal was already running out of space. Right now we are close to Soldier's Peak. It's starting to get chilly the closer we're getting towards the mountain. Levi said he had a map to get through the tunnels.

Let's see what I remember from the quest. Demons, possessed skeletons, veil tearing and the fact that Sophia Dryden is still alive-ish. Oh and that mage dude. I can't remember his name at the moment. I know we're going to be facing all the demons on the spectrum here. From Hunger to Pride.

I can't believe a walk is what is separating us from Soldier's Peak. I hope nothing bad happens. Ah last page, I'm going to ask Levi if he has a journal.

-/-

First entry woo! New journal!

"You are always writing in your journal aren't you?" Leliana asked. Leliana, Wynne, Sten, and I were in the wagon for the moment. Derek and the others outside. Morrigan had the luxury of being able to fly. Talen got pissed off that he hasn't been able to get that far in his shapeshifting yet.

"It's a habit really. It also keeps me sane. I usually only do it at the end of the day but, since this a smooth ride, I can write in my journal now."

"It keeps you sane? Dear child, you are too young to lose your mind." Wynne said.

"Ha, ha. That was so funny. It's like this, if I have something to focus on, then I wouldn't be stressing out about the fact that I've been away from home for 3 years. If I start to think about that then all these what if questions pop up and I get panicky for no reason. Writing in this helps me focus on the job ahead and not everything else. Sometimes it's better to see the tree instead of the forest. A journey of a thousand miles, begins with one step. So I'm taking this one step at a time to not overwhelm myself."

"I...have never thought about it that way. You say you've been away from your home for 3 years?" Wynne said.

"Yeah and I haven't found a way back until Flemeth told me that the chance for it might be coming soon. There's a choice I'm going to have to make once I get there though. Always a catch."

"She's also been away from her husband and children for three years." Leliana said.

"I have heard about your children. What were they like?" Wynne asked.

"You want to know about them?"

"Is that so odd?"

"A little. Even Eren doesn't ask about my home. Well I have one son and a daughter, a pair. My son would be getting close to five now and my daughter four. I had them really close together. My son was only 5 months old when I learned I got pregnant again. They're beautiful. My son looks more like me because of my slanted eyes. He got them too. My daughter is more of a mix between me and my husband though. Oh but they were so beautiful. My son had a mischievous streak though. You always had a to keep an eye on him. My daughter...she wasn't even a year old when I left her...I try not to think about them too much. It gets painful."

"A mother should stay with the child if they cannot fend for themselves." Sten said.

"Well I don't doubt that my husband is doing everything he can to provide for them. He's a good man."

"I should hope so, otherwise I see no point of you wearing your ring on your hand." Leliana said. I chuckled and I felt my face flush.

"Alright, time for you all to get out. We've reached the tunnels." Derek said. We got out one by one. I looked into the opening of the cave. I was able to see the entrance and a few boulders but it got darker, deeper inside.

"Here, carry these torches. I got the map to the fortress on hand here. Just follow me and we'll have no trouble." Levi said. Talen lit the torches. Sten, Derek, Leliana, and Alistair took them. I found myself inching closer to the middle of the group as we saw the last of the light from the opening. Only the sounds of our boots crunching the ground echoed in the tunnels. Can I say I hate tunnels? I hate tunnels with a passion. They're creepy, dusty, musky, and they might have spiders.

"Hmmm, no...oh it was the other turn..." Levi said. Talen ground. This was the third time we had to go back and retrace our steps.

"Your map is not as accurate as you have led us to believe." Morrigan said.

"Well I had to go through this path a couple of times before I got it right. Ah right here."

I was getting antsy again. All this turning and retracing got me paranoid. I heard a rumbling near us and, as my female instincts tell me, I grabbed the first person who was near me. Who was Sten. He just gave me a look.

"Sorry, Sorry. I don't do well in environments like this." The 4 GWs tensed and Alfred growled.

"Darkspawn!" Derek yelled. Five of them came from the tunnels. Alistair passed his torch to Zevran. Alistair, Eren, and Talen came to the front and started to attack with some help from Morrigan and Leliana. They were all killed in a short amount of time.

"Where there are tunnels, there are darkspawn." Derek said, spitting on the ground.

"Let's just hope that there isn't anymore." Eren said. The torches made everything seem so scary. Yes, I'm a grown woman who's a little scared of the dark. Don't judge me!

"Boo!"

"Wah! Talen you jerk!"

"It's ok mi niña, just let me hold onto you in this very oscuro cave and I-"

"Zevran, no."

"You may hold onto me if this is making you uncomfortable." Leliana said.

"That would be awesome." I said, grabbing onto Leliana's arm tightly. I couldn't help but feel like something was watching us.

"Why have you abandoned me to this fate of loneliness mi niña?"

"I'll grieve for you once we get out of this cave." I said flatly. I heard Sten snort. I looked at him but it remained impassive. Leliana and I looked each other for a second before we started to laugh.

"Women." Eren mumbled which made us laugh harder. I saw the light at the end of the tunnel after walking for a few more minutes. I let out a breath of relief as I smelled the crisp and cool air, the shadow of the fortress looming over us.

"And here she is. Soldier's Peak, very impressive isn't she?"

"You got lost a few times didn't you?" Talen said.

"I didn't get lost. The map just got soggy. Bah, it's not important. Let's keep going." I exhaled and my breath was visible. There was snow, snow! I love snow. I had to keep myself from going crazy like a little kid.

"To think that this used to be so full of life. And now look at it. If we do get this fortress back up, I might even send a few dwarfs to spruce it up. Make it look decent." Derek said.

"It is as you say. This place as fallen into dissaray." Sten said. Hey that rhymed!

"How far has the Grey Wardens have deteriorated. They even accept people like you Alistair."

"Hey."

As we walked up the broken stairs and passed the gate, I felt like a bucket of cold water splash in my face. My vision became blurry just like in the fade.

"Fall back! Fall back already!"

"Taking the Peak will not be easy, m'lord."

"I gave the Wardens one chance to die with honor. Instead..hole up..starve them out."

"...months of supplies..."

"Too weak...final judgement."

I rubbed my eyes after a bright light dissipated and the vision fled.

"Holy Jesus."

"Maker's breath!"

"By the Ancestors!"

"Vashedan!"

"What was that? You saw that too? I swear I'm not out of mind." Levi said.

"A vision of the past. I've heard stories such as this. The princess never woke up from the dream."

"It wasn't a dream. It was a fade tear. Something bad happened here, I can feel it."

"Tis true. The veil is thin in many areas. I would not be surprised should we see demons."

"Demons? By the Maker this place is haunted. Good thing you are here Wardens."

"Come on. Into the den." Eren said.

"Wait. Look at the ground, mi amigo." Bodies, almost skeletal with their armor and weapons intact.

"Bodies? Wasn't this fortress abandoned centuries ago?" Alistair said.

"Something doesn't feel right." Talen said.

"We need to be on our guard." Wynne said.

We walked further into the courtyard until I heard the growls of the undead. They came out of the snow like daisies! We didn't get some time to think when they came at us from all sides.

"Don't get singled out!" Talen shouted but it was too late. There were too many, crowding us from all sides. I managed to get out of the group but four followed me. I rolled into them, causing two to fall. I bashed in their legs, but I got hit in the face by one of their shields. I felt blood run down my nose. I tackled one down, one, two and it's skull was cracked.

Unfortunately that put me wide open. One was on the ground, crawling toward me and the other two came at me with their shields. I put my hands up, ready to take them down, when the one on the ground, grabbed my ankle and bit. It gave the skeleton's an opportunity and they both tackled me down. I struggled against their deadly grip, trying to get away. One of the skeletons raised their sword to stab downward. That's when a bear quickly tackled it to the ground. I got up and smashed the skeleton that got my foot. Talen was already crunching on the two that had me down. I looked into the courtyard. The fighting was still going. Talen gave out a nasty roar right behind me. Besides Talen, I saw that Morrigan had shapeshifted into a bear and pounding on every skeleton she saw. I saw Wynne being rounded into a corner. Alfred was trying to protect her. The rest were boxed in, a mash of bones and flesh. I ran over to where Wynne was, punching at every single head.

She gave out a cry and I saw more blood on the snow. I growled and started just flinging them away.

"Get off of her!" Then I started to hear some rumbling. An earthquake!? I could barely keep my balance. Finally it stopped. I recovered quickly and stomped on the skeletons that were moving. I looked around, we weren't getting attacked anymore. I knelt to Wynne. "Wynne, are you alright? How's your leg?"

"It's fine my dear. Can you reach into my pack and get a potion for me?" I rummaged until I found one and gave it to her.

"If that's what we expect from the rest of the fortress, it's going to be a hard walk." Derek said. Wynne limped over to where Talen was laying on the snow.

"Ow! Don't touch it!" Talen shouted when Wynne touched it.

"It's a broken leg."

"Yes Ms. Obvious! It's gonna take more mana to cure it..." Talen grunted in pain.

"Mi niña, estás bien?"

"I'm fine Zevran, just a bloody nose." I rubbed some snow over it to try to clean it.

"Status!" Eren said.

"Got dinged up, lost one of my braids, but I'm good." Derek said.

"Dislocated joint, but otherwise, I'm fine." Alistair said.

"I got a broken leg."

"I got hit in the face."

"My mana is low, but otherwise unharmed."

"Nothing to report." Sten said. Alfred barked. Wait a minute, where's Leliana?

"Can someone help?" Turned out that she slipped during the earthquake and fell down a well. Luckily the well has been filled by gunk over the centuries so she wasn't hurt.

"So Leliana won't be able to come until we find some rope and Talen's leg is broken. Someone is going to need to stay behind to make sure they'll be safe." Eren said.

"Me and the elf can stay." Derek said, slapping Zevran's back.

"And why should I stay?"

"I saw you trying to fight those bonies. Stabbing them in the stomach or the liver doesn't really do much when they don't got any. You won't be of use. Of course I'll stay since you need some backbone." Derek laughed.

"Wynne are you sure you don't want to stay?" I asked.

"I'll be fine. My leg has already healed."

"Let's move on." Sten said. Time to go into the creepy and haunted fortress. Yay.

* * *

**Edited. Its funny that I'm more interested in getting this story out than playing my games. I haven't even started Alpha Sapphire.**

**Shout out to Catann985, Maria-the-Fox, Kalmtrich, and shadowfan999 for favoriting/following this story! :D**

**A. zareth: **_I'm so glad that you said that. I try to keep everyone in character. I always go to the wiki and read their dialogue to make sure that what I write sounds just like_ them.**  
redrosemary: **_Thank you :3 You are an awesome reviewer.  
_**Guest: **_Its a suggestion, but my character is trying not to let anyone know that she's from another world. A phone would be too conspicuous and there are no charging stations anyway lol Like I said earlier, everyone gets a turn. Can't have one character run the show you know?  
_**shadowfan999: **_I hope this was speedy enough :3_


	16. Death and Rebirth

So we stopped because Sten and Alistair got stuck in some stairs...it makes sense honest.

The last entry explained how Talen got his leg broken by the skeletons and Leliana fell down a well. Derek and Zevran decided to stay in case more of them came. Eren made Alfred stay for more power. It's only Alistair, Sten, Eren, Morrigan, Wynne and I. Oh and Levi but I know that he won't be helping us. We went through another vision. There was the warden Sophia in the middle of the room. She looked transparent as well as the men and woman gathered around her. It was the scene where she was rallying all of them against the king that tried to kill them. Running low on supplies, holding the fort, and stuff.

"Tis such a thin line between the fade and this fortress. We must be on our guard." Morrigan said. We looked around the room. It was musky and dusty but there were remnants of old furniture and pictures, lost to time. I saw the poster than had all the names of the Grey Wardens who died here. There was nothing else we could do here so we went to the door leading out of it. Alistair tried opening the door, but it wouldn't budge.

"Here." Eren full on rammed the door. He stumbled into the next room facing against an arcane horror and two rage demons. The arcane horror froze Eren, but it didn't last long since both of the rage demons flung fire spells at our faces. We all retreated into the next room while the flames nipped at our butts. The rage demons came into the room with us. Sten left us behind to go fight the horror where Eren was. Alistair, Morrigan, and I were left to deal with the two rage demons. I couldn't get close to them at all. With the way my weapons are designed, I'd have to go close to get a good hit in. Rage demons have an aura of fire and, when you hit them, flames become attracted to you. I couldn't get near them even if I wanted to. Alistair was having a better time with his longsword, but it was already glowing hot at the tip. Morrigan sent out a cone of cold and froze both of the demons in place. I got to shatter one. We followed Sten and Eren into the room where the Arcane Horror was lying at their feet, dead.

"You weren't kidding about the demons!" Levi said, coming out of his hiding place. Wynne went over toward Eren. He had some cold burns that went away once Wynne healed him.

"We must be cautious. This isn't the last of them." Wynne said.

"Sten, how's your cheek?" I saw that it had a burn.

"It is fine. Let's keep moving." I rolled my eyes. Note: Remember to talk with Sten about not keeping wounds hidden. The next door that we opened had four skeleton archers with a minor vantage point. Eren pushed me back. Alistair and Sten went inside to be the poor souls to be almost pelted by arrows. I tried to looked around Eren to see what was happening to Alistair and Sten.

"Wah!" One arrow got close to getting me in the face. I needed to talk to Eren about getting some helmets.

"Stay behind me!" I heard a crash. The small stairs had broken under Sten's and Alistair weight when they both tried to climb them. Morrigan pushed by us to go into the room, Eren on her heels. He jumped onto the banister and started to tackle the skeletons. Morrigan did a cone of cold and Eren started to shatter all of them. Broken bones scattered everywhere. I stopped to try not to laugh at Sten and Alistair.

"Stop moving." Sten said.

"Well the wood is moving into places I don't want it to!"

"You are making it worse!"

"A hand please?"

Gotta go help them. So I'll stop here, even though seeing Alistair writhe around is funny.

-/-

I promised her that if something ever happened, that I would write in this journal. I always thought that it was just a waste of time. I truly didn't understand why she did this. Now, I have an inkling as to why.

Nia, if you're reading this, I am so sorry. I did what I had to. I hope you can forgive me.

She is resting by my side. I'll try my best write to the best of my ability everything that has happened so far.

After defeating the skeleton archers, and helping Sten and Alistair out of the stairs, we made our way through what seemed to be a small library. There were three rage demons waiting for us there. Morrigan pushed to the front of our group in order to freeze all of them with her magic. Alistair and I took this opportunity and shattered all of them. Morrigan settled on a book that was lying on the floor.

"Twould seem that this book is a matter of existence I have not seen."

"What do you mean?" Nia said.

"A part of it exists in the fade, and yet physically, exists in this world as well."

"Don't tell me you're going to touch it." Alistair said.

"Twere I you Alistair, I would expect you would."

"Hey!"

"We are wasting time. If the book cannot gives us any information, I suggest we move on." Sten said.

"Let's go." Nia said. We exited the library through another door and up a set of stairs. it was an open room filled with destroyed furniture. I saw wisps of green light and energy floating in the air. As we explored, there was a set of symbols on the floor. The closer we got, the more I shivered. There was something unnatural in this room.

"There is a tear in the veil right in this room. We should-"

Wynne did not get to finish her thought. Undead wardens came back to life. They settle themselves upon the carvings on the floor, bathing in energy. A rift opened and an abomination passed through into our world. Alistair and I rushed it. We couldn't let the abomination attack the mages. The undead kept themselves away, drawing out more energy from the fade to feed the abomination.

Sten came and hurled wild swings at the abomination. As much as he would cut it, it would not fall.

"Go for the undead! They're keeping it alive!" Nia had shouted. Sten had the abomination's attention. Alistair, Nia and I went toward the undead. We each settled on one. They were busy in keeping the abomination alive, that they made no move to protect themselves. A strong slash from my sword beheaded the creature. Once Nia fell the last one, the abomination roared in pain from Sten's blows. Alistair and I moved to take this opportunity. Unfortunately we weren't able to wound it for too long. The undead wardens came to life again and started their healing ritual.

"Nia, Alistair! Focus on the undead!" I said. The abomination let out a loud roar. It grabbed Sten's head and crashed their heads. Sten fell unconscious on the floor. The abomination stalked toward Wynne and Morrigan. Morrigan tried conjuring some more ice but the abomination shrugged it off. Wynne kept on moving the debris telekinetically to stop it, but it was in vain. Their mana reserves were low and their spells were not hitting the demon strong enough to make it fall. Nia and Alistair were fighting the undead behind me.

I had to protect them. I ran and bashed my shield against the demon's back. I plunged my sword into it's side. The demon let out a piercing shriek, stunning me for one second. It grabbed me and flung me against the wall. My sword and shield fell from my grasp. I had landed hard on the floor, losing my breath from the pain. The demon inching itself toward me.

"Eren!" Nia ran toward me and plunged both of her daggers into the creature's back. Its focus shifted onto her. It grabbed her arm and threw her into Morrigan and Wynne. Alistair was still focusing on one of the undead. If that one fell then our attacks would be able to wound it. My sword and shield were in front of it. I had to take a chance but if only I had just ran away. The moment has been burned into my eyes. I had grabbed onto my shield but the demon was standing over me. It's strength pulsing out of it as it.

"Look out!" Nia screamed, scrambling away from Wynne and Morrigan. Nia kicked me out of the way. I rolled away and her screams echoed the room. I looked on in horror, her screams I hear in my nightmares. The abomination grabbed her from behind. Its muscles throbbing as it focused it's strength into them. It had started to crush her. Nia's armor buckled inward and blood spewed out her mouth.

"Nia!" Alistair had killed the last undead and ran toward the demon. Alistair dealth a powerful swing, decapitating the demon, it's grisly head falling to the floor. The abomination released Nia as it fell to the floor in a bloody heap. The blood wasn't it's own. I ran toward Nia, holding her in my arms. Sten waking from the blow.

"Please, please, not her." I whimpered. Her chest...was too gruesome for words. Her arms in different directions. She was wheezing. "Wynne! You have to do something! You have to heal her!" She gave me a knowing and tired look.

"Even if I was at full strength, her injuries are too grave to address."

"No...No. No! Nia, stay with me!" She had made some choking sounds. Nia was struggling to say something, but I could not hear.

Then silence. She was no longer breathing. Her dead eyes staring into the ceiling. Her blood pooling around both of us, soaking my armor and pads. There was so much blood.

"No! Not her! Don't take her away! Maker, Old Gods, Anyone!" I held her gingerly to my chest. I did not want to face her death. Maker, there was so much death. I cried into her hair, her blood was still warm in my fingers.

That's when a light shined from the tear in the Veil. Everyone gathered around us, wondering what sort of demon would pass by this time.

It was no demon, but a ball of shining light. It floated motionless until the light began to stretch. It's silhouette turned into a person. It didn't look neither male or female. It had golden hair, white skin and dazzling blue eyes. It had wings in the back, shining armor, a sword on its hip.

"Is that...?"

"You are the spirit that has bonded to Nia. Why have you come here?" Morrigan asked.

"There isn't enough time to discuss that. There is only time for a choice. Eren Cousland. I come to you for a decision. Her mother placed her under my care so that no harm will come to her. I have failed in my mission, but there is hope. If you allow me to enter her soul, I will be able to save her."

There was no hesitation in my voice. "Do it." The figure rose its hand to stop me from saying anything further.

"Nia is an existence that is not supposed to exist. I have gathered power for quite some time to send her home. Saving her will no doubt take most of my power. Even then, it would be many more years to gather more power to send her home. Saving her will also give her some semblance of this world. If I were to gather enough power in the future, she might be permanently stuck in this world regardless. Would you bare the consequences of her existence, should you choose to save her?"

"I don't care. Please, save her." The figure nodded.

"As you wish." Nia's body glowed as it raised a hand toward her. She floated toward it and it laid her on the floor. It had unsheated it's sword and positioned it over her crushed chest. "Rise, Gift from God."

It plunged the sword into her. Nia's skin cracked with golden light pouring out. The light shone like the sun. I had closed my eyes for a moment before the light died down. I looked down at Nia.

She started to convulse, light pouring out of her. Her screams other worldly. Sten had pushed me out of the way and ripped off her armor. Her skin broke and renewed itself. Her bones cracked and became anew. Her chest that was pushed in, coming out, muscles coming together, skin healing over it. It was a difficult sight to see. Finally everything had calmed down.

Her wounds were gone and Nia was laying down as if she was asleep. Wynne took her wrist in one hand, and put another hand of healing energy over her.

"She is alive." Wynne said with incredulity.

"Andraste's flaming sword, what was that?" Levi asked.

"I...have no clue." Alistair said. I shook in relief.

"We should not celebrate just yet. The veil is still torn and we have not won back this fortress." Morrigan said.

This is where I will end things. Please forgive me Nia.

-/-

I had two dreams before I woke up. Well more like one dream and then a conversation.

I was lying in a hospital bed. I recognized it as one of the hospital's room where I had my daughter. Of course they didn't have any of the things that came with childbirth in this one. I was covered in wires. The sun shining into my room. It looked like late afternoon. I turned my head and my husband was there.

"Hey."

He looked at me.

"HOLY Sweet mother of fuck...awake you are!"

His speech stuttered and nearly manic as he stood, shaking, by my bed.

"How...you're up now?! How you feeling? This is incredible!"

"Tired, thirsty. Actually really sleepy."

"I'll get the doc!" I grabbed his hand and shook my head.

"Stay." Tears welled up in the corner of his eyes. I can see the excitement and pain as they fell and streamed down his face. It hurt to try to wipe them away. He just held my hand on his cheek. He looked so thin. The bags under his eyes were so noticeable.

"I'm sorry. I...I tried everything..I asked them. I've been doing so mu-..."

His hands shook as he stood by me with my hands in his. I shook my head as I consoled him best I could.

"Shhh, baby. No, it wasn't your fault. It's ok." I felt myself smiling. "What happened?"

"You got into a car accident. A really bad one. I tried to think of anything and everything I could do to help. I came nearly everyday to give you some of my energy. I wasn't sure it was even working."

"Huh. How long have I been out?"

"3 years. I'm so glad you're back. I missed my kitty soo much."

"Wow...I...puppy...listen to me. I was in another world. You remember Dragon Age right? I was in that world, I was helping them!" He just smiled and listened to my tale. After I told him everything I remembered, I started to fee weak. I felt so tired. He looked as if he started to panic.

"Babe? Y-You're disappearing!"

"I'm so tired..."

"NO!...nonono! Please don't go! I just got you back...I can't lose you now baby. I don't want to lose you!"

* * *

Day unknown

I opened my eyes to a world of white. There was nothing around me, in front of me, or behind me. I looked at my hands. I had a sense of gravity. I felt the floor but, when I looked down, there was nothing but white. I didn't feel scared. Instead, I felt peace, acceptance, warm and loved. It was as if someone was hugging me tight and telling me it was ok. It was a world of warmth and light. A light began to shine in front of me. I shielded my eyes before Halo appeared before me. Halo always looked like a Halo. Even though there was a person in front of me, I knew it was Halo. He looked like an angel with white, glowing skin, beautiful blue eyes, and streaming golden hair.

"Halo. You look different." It smiled.

"It has been a long time. I'm sorry for not being able to send you back."

"What do you mean?"

"You have a place here. I do not know what role you play, but know that I have not abandoned you. This is the last of my power for now. I will be here, a part of you, the other part in the fade. One day when I have enough power, I will complete my mission. Until then, my power will be your power. Use it wisely loved one."

"Halo, you're not making any sense." It just smiled at me. It reminded me of my mom almost. It grabbed me by my arms and hugged me. I relished the feeling. This was a feeling I will never forget; the feeling of complete acceptance. Halo kissed me on the forehead and I heard him in my head.

"You are loved Gift from God." He echoed.

I woke up in the real world. I sat up fast, feeling a little dizzy as I did so. I didn't even notice the bandages around me as I found my journal next to me with my pencil. I wrote everything that I was able to remember about the dream with Halo. After that was done, I looked around in the room I was staying in. I knew that this had to be a part of the fortress but this part was clean. There was no debris and the dust surrounding my bed was gone. Yet there was that muskiness in the air. A window from high in the wall shined the sun in my room, basking it in a low light. I rubbed my eyes in confusion before noticing the bandages around my chest. I touched the place and put pressure on my chest. It was an odd sensation. I could feel my fingers touch my chest, but I couldn't feel the pressure on my chest. The numbness spread from the center to almost my collarbone.

I tried remembering how I got this way. All I remembered was the fight between the demon and my group and, after, the dream with my husband and Halo. I heard the door open and I saw Leliana came through the door.

"Hey." Leliana's eyes widened.

"You...you're awake! Wynne! Talen!" She shouted, closing the door. At first I was confused but then I put two and two together. I'm laying in a bed with bandages around my chest. Something must have happened to be, something grave. Wynne and Talen came through the door. I pulled up the blanket to my chest as an automatic response even though I had bandages covering my parts.

"It's alright, he's not the one who bandaged you there."

"I don't see why you did that. I can't even see anything and everything healed perfectly. Lay down and relax, we're just going to be thorough." I did and they had their hands shining green over my body, checking everything. I wondered what happened.

"How do you feel? Is there anything strange?"

"Well, I can't feel my chest. It's numb from the center of my chest to my collar bone then down to my stomach." Wynne and Talen looked at each other, a glance that looked grim.

"Leliana, find Eren please." She went through the door.

"Can someone tell me what's going on?"

"What do you remember?"

"I remember coming here. We were going in to clean up Soldier's Peak from the fade rip. I remember fighting skeletons and demons. Sten and Alistair fell through the stairs. Then we found an abomination that went through and undead wardens and...and...I can't remember anything after that." The door opened again and Eren was standing there. He had on warm clothes and no armor which looked odd. He took one look at me and relief passed through his face.

"Nia!"

"He-whoa!" Eren launched himself at me and gave me a bear hug. I felt my face flush. I only had bandages covering the upper half of me and my black pants on my other half.

"Hey, hey, hey, back off she's still recovering!" Eren sat down in a chair while Wynne went to fetch me a shirt. "Alright, you look pretty good. Other than that numb thing you were telling us about, your physical body is all healed now."

"What happened? I can't remember anything."

"Don't ask me, I wasn't here."

"Here you go Nia." Wynne said, giving me one of the shirts from my pack. I quickly slipped it on. "If there is anything else you feel, please tell us immediately. We'll leave you two alone." Wynne said. Talen and Wynne went out of the room, closing the door behind them. Eren had his face in his hands. There was a small silence between us for a while. It gave me time to get my journal again and start writing. Eren was rubbing his face and his eyes looked swollen. He also had bags under his eyes. I knew then that he wasn't sleeping well.

"I see you're already writing."

"Yep."

"Stop. There is something you have to read and something I have to tell you."

-/-

It's late at night. I can't sleep or, more like, I'm so tired. I'm tired of everything. I reread the entry that Eren had written down. I couldn't believe it, I didn't want to believe it and I thought to my 'dream' with my husband. I thought about Halo and why he explained all those things to me. It didn't make sense then but now I see everything clearly. Halo had used all the power that he gained all these years to save my life but in doing so, I won't be able to go home. Years, it's going to take years and I don't even know how many years...

My hands were shaking by the time I read everything that Eren wrote down. My heart slowing down in fear. I felt like I couldn't breath. I remembered Flemeth's words when I left the wilds. She told me to choose or else someone else would make it. The choice was already made. It was made by Eren. He saved my life. I was dying and he did the only thing he could think of because he didn't want to lose me. I was a scramble of emotions. I'm glad that I was alive, I was hurt because I wasn't able to go home, I was angry that Eren did that, and I was in despair for how long I would have to wait.

"This can't be real." I whispered. Then I remembered that dream I had of being in the hospital. My husband had shouted that my body was disappearing. If that was real...then my body...what happened to my body? What happened to me back home?

"I didn't know what to do. The abomination crushed your entire chest and both your arms. There was no way you would survive even with healing magic. When that spirit approached me, all I had in mind was to save your life."

"But my family...my kids...my husband...my home..."

"I'm sorry."

"You're sorry? Hah! You're sorry!? That's all you have to say! You...you...get out." I had so much rage.

"Nia-"

"I said get out! Get out before I say something I regret! Just...leave me alone." I said, my voice breaking.

So Eren left and I've been in this room since. I cried. I wailed. I cursed. I punched at the walls. I grabbed the chair that Eren sat in and threw it at the wall, the wood splintering on the ground. I sat on the ground thinking, remembering. There were so many emotions coursing through me. After everything I did and thought, in the end I felt nothing. The light from the window has been gone for some time. It's dark and cold and it feels wonderful. I just wanted to stay here forever. I'm tired.

So very tired.

* * *

**Very sorry for the curse words. My husband wrote that part himself.**

**Shout out to Killer999, KrystylSky, Queen of Time and Space, Chibielle, cbosw5, FearaNightmare, Tripe T 123, and stephaniekit for favoriting/following this story!**

**shadowfan999: **_Woah, Norway huh? That's so cool. Yeah I haven't started it. Truthfully I haven't even finished X and Y! I got a lot of gaming time ahead of_ me.  
**KrystylSky:** _And I love your reviews!_ :D  
**redrosemary: **_I love AtlA, I just haven't gotten to Korra yet. I'm waiting until all the books are out. I'm so angry that Nick cut the funding AGAIN to the series!_ :(  
**shinedown: **_I was wondering where you were! I hope that your computer gets fixed soon_ :3  
**ZA, Guest, Queen of Time and Space, efdfd, Tabitha128: **_efdfd, and guest, love your double reviews! I hope this chapter answers your questions about that pairing. :3 As much as I love Zevran, the main focus is not on the romance. Though there will be some in the future. :)_

**It is because of your reviews that got this chapter up so quickly! If you keep on reviewing, I'm sure there will be more story for you! Have some internet candy! :D**


	17. Focus

9:30 Harvestmere 15th

Tonight was the longest night I've ever experienced. I couldn't sleep. I was lost to my mind in my small room. I was cold and shivering but the sensation was relieving. I didn't have anything left inside me and the cold was at least making me shiver. I saw my breath come out in small wisps, my hands cold to the point they were hurting. I don't know how long I did it but I stared up at the ceiling. Leliana had given me some bread, water, and dried jerky with a candle, but I ignored her. No one else visited me. The candle was almost gone. I grew bored again eventually. I got up and found my boots. I opened the door. The rest of the fortress was in shambles. I was in the first floor from what I remembered. There was only one point in my life where I remembered feeling this way and it didn't fade for a while.

Depression was clawing back from the depths of my soul and was destroying me. I couldn't stay in that room anymore. I wanted to feel anything. There were no colors. The world was grey. I kept on thinking about what happened. I wanted to be angry, I wanted the rage to come up from my stomach and take over. Instead I felt empty. There was nothing left so what do I do? Do I continue with the promise I made to Eleanor and go on with Eren and the others? Do I just follow the game and see where it would take me? At this point I didn't know if I could even change anything. What was there left?

I wanted to sleep, I wanted to run, I wanted to feel. This was it. I had crashed into the lowest point that I've ever been. Then I remembered what my mom told me long ago, once you've reached the bottom, the only way to go is up.

I went through the main gates. There was a dying bonfire in the courtyard. I saw that they had swept up all the snow from the ground. There looked to be a beginning of a smithy. There were various chests and items around. I've slept for three days. Levi's family must have been nearby to have settled so quickly. I looked to the stairs in front of me. I could run away from here. The path was open before me. I could leave it all behind and then what? I had to stop from thinking impulsive thoughts. It would get me nowhere. I sat on the first step and just focused on breathing. All this thinking was going to drive me insane. I had to stop. I looked up to the night sky. Two moons instead of my one moon and unfamiliar stars like a blanket over my head.

All I wanted was to go home. Was that too much to ask? Home, that reminded me about that 'dream' I had. What that a dream? Did I meet my husband? Did I die? What happened to my body? If my body disappeared in my world, then is this my real body now? What about my husband? What about my kids? What about Halo? Did he become me? No, he told me that he'd be staying in the fade to slowly charge up power to get me home. That just made ask, when? How long would it take for me to get home? A year, three, a decade?

There were so many questions I wanted to ask and no one to answer them. I shivered again, relishing the automatic physical response but I was even getting tired of that. I heard the door open behind me and I saw Sten coming out.

"Why are you out here? You should be inside recovering. The wounds inflicted on you were grave."

"I'm fine Sten. They already looked me over. I don't have anything wrong with me." Sten grunted in response but I couldn't make it if it was an annoying grunt or an accepting grunt. I looked at the snow that still stayed on the stairs. It was so quiet, the fortress looked dead. "Hey Sten?"

"What?"

"When you lost your sword...did you feel incomplete?"

"...I felt that a piece of my soul was lost. Even now I still ache for it's weight. The weapon I have now cannot even begin to be compared to it."

"...Something similar happened to me when I...died?...I...I might not be able to go home anymore." There was a gigantic lump in my throat. My eyes filled with tears. I didn't want to stay it. Saying it would make it real but the words started to pour out of me. "My family was my soul. These 3 years I had just kept hoping that one day I would return to them. To see my kids faces again. To see how they have grown. And now...I don't know anymore!...Eren saved my life but...am I going to have to live with this pain? How are you able to handle something like this? How are you able to stand here?" My voice broke in the last sentence and my tears rushed down my face.

"Because I must survive. I have a mission. I seek an answer, for that I will fight in every passing day. Perhaps I will reunite with my sword or perhaps I will not, but I cannot stand idle. I must wake, I must fight. I will endure."

I knew what to do with myself at this point. It'll be hard but the bottle was empty now. All these questions and all this emptiness needs to be sealed away. It's not what you should do. You should never bottle your emotions but I have no choice. It was a kill or be kill world. I only had one option: Continue with the story and maybe I'll find a way home. I stood up and wiped my eyes. To do this I would need focus. To only focus on the mission and the end result. I'll pick up the pieces later. I had to get up and keep fighting.

"Sten, I need you to tell me something. I need you to tell me to keep fighting. Order me to keep fighting and do it without hesitation. Tell me this so I can keep my eyes straight on my goal."

"I am not in a position to order you. If you tell one of the wardens-"

"If I try to go to one of them, I might say something or do something I'll regret. I don't want to do that. Tell me Sten, order me." He looked at me long and hard.

"Very well. I order you to fight. I order you to survive. You will not fall here. You will persist." I covered my eyes again and focused on what he said.

"Tell me again Sten." I focused on his voice.

"I order you to fight. You will not stop until you have reached your goal." I gritted my teeth. All of these emotions were useless now. I had to take all of them and forced them to the bottom of that bottle of my heart. There was to time to think about any of that. I'll get to it in the end. Only focus, all I need to do was focus. I let out a breath and took another deep one. That was it. That was all I needed. I have no time to worry about myself. I will put myself on the back burner.

"Thank you Sten. I know what I have to do." I finally felt the bitter cold in my fingertips. I had to get some sleep. The exhaustion finally settling in. "I think I can sleep now. Good night Sten."

"Nia. The sacrifice that you did for the Warden Eren was admirable. You have earned my respect."

I think that was the first smile that I had on my face since I woke up.

"That means more to me than you'll ever know Sten. Good night."

It took a while to write this all down but now I have a path cleared for me. Follow the story and do what I can.

9:30 Harvestmere 16th

I woke up a bit groggy. I had that one type of sleep where you close your eyes and then wake up a few hours later, no dreams, nothing. I rubbed my eyes. I felt hungry and I looked at the food on the desk. I began eating slowly. I had to get my strength up. The bread was hard and the jerky was tasteless but it reminded me that I'm here. I just experienced death and I'm here. I'm alive. As much as I hated that it cost me the chance to go home, I had give Eren some sort of thanks. I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for him. My choice was done and I had to live with it. I had to look at situation with an optimistic perspective. Optimistic doesn't mean happy though. I just had to make good of a bad thing. After I finished eating, I came out of my room. There were stray candles here and there with some torches on the walls that were going strong. Everyone must be already awake. I went to the main gates and took a breath.

I opened the doors and the courtyard, that looked dead and silent last night, was bustling with activity. I saw Levi carrying a chest over to where he had his shop. There were little kids running around filling the air with laughter. It was a stark difference from when I came out last night. I saw Levi's brother Mikhael already tended to the smithy. Derek was with him talking to him about something. Well, I couldn't stand there all day. I walked down the stairs and went over to Derek.

"Good to see you're up missy! How you feeling?" Derek said.

"I'm fine. I'm slightly hungry."

"Well come on then. Levi was able to get some of his supplies back up here. He fixed the caves so we can navigate them. He got his family lost a couple of times before Mikhael put up a few signs directing all of them. It was pretty funny." Derek said. I followed him to a bench near the stairs. It had an assortment of foods. There was also a pot of soup that was still warm. I grabbed a bowl and served myself some. It had the consistency of grits with a weird pale grey color. I gave a Derek a glance and he shrugged. I took a spoonful. It was absolutely disgusting.

"Ugh, who made this soup?"

"Eren."

"No wonder it tastes like crap." Derek guffawed. I looked around the table to make this more appetizing. I grabbed some of the salt and pepper, cut me some carrots in slivers, as well as some jerky. I tasted it and it was slightly better. I added some more salt and pepper to it.

"You made a lot of people worried missy."

"Sorry, I didn't mean to die. I'll ask the next demon that tries to kill me to not kill me politely." Derek guffawed and slapped my back. I groaned in pain and I followed him to the smithy. Mikhael was pounding away, working on a sword. I ate my soup silently. Alfred barked overhead and I saw him and Eren come out of the main gates. Alfred got some love from the kids that were running around. Eren went to the stables that already had a few horses and talked to another person who was stationed there. Probably one of Levi's cousins or older nephews. Alfred came over to me and ran around in circles. Then he went and ran toward the gate leading to the cave entrance. Leliana, Sten, and Alistair came through. I finished the last of my soup and took some of the snow on the ground to clean the bowl. I heard someone's boots crunching behind me and I saw Zevran.

"La bella durmiente has finally awoken."

"I was only asleep for 3 days Zevran, not a hundred years."

"The term still applies. Are you well?" I shrugged.

"Physically yes. Talen and Wynne came and checked me out." I saw him play with one of his braids and look to the courtyard but he kept glancing at me. I put the bowl and spoon back. "What is it Zevran? You keep looking at me."

"Can I not appreciate your beauty?"

"I'm not a beauty but go ahead."

"I say you are beautiful because it is true. Does this trouble you? Would you like me to stop?"

"Hmph, not really. Everyone thinks you're annoying when you flirt with them, but I don't mind."

"Ah so does this mean your bed will be-"

"I said you can call me beautiful Zevran, not 'sleep with me.'" Zevran chuckled. It didn't look Alistair, Leliana, or Sten realized I was awake since they went toward Levi with a deer that Sten was carrying.

"There is something else that I would like to ask."

"You don't have to ask for permission Zevran, just ask me." I said, leaning against the wall.

"Is it true that you are not from Thedas? I have heard from Morrigan, Wynne, and Eren about your spirit friend. Morrigan has deduced that a spirit of that caliber could only come from a place that is truly not our own." I bit my lip. My secret was out.

"What would you do if I said that I wasn't from Thedas?"

"Nothing would change mi niña. I only ask to satisfy my curiosity."

"Curiosity killed the cat Zevran but to answer your original question...yeah, I'm not...I'm not from anywhere here. My world is way different from here."

"If I were to ask questions about your world, would you answer them?"

"Yeah, it's not like the information is going to change anything around here."

"So it's true that you're from nowhere." Derek said, coming up and grabbing a piece of bread.

"Basically."

"Any good looking dwarven woman where you live?"

"We don't have dwarves."

"What? Of course you have dwarves!"

"Nope, we don't even have elves. We have different races of humans but that's it. No dwarves, qunaris, or elves."

"Huh! Your world doesn't sound all that appealing then."

"Derek if you had an idea to travel there, it'd be all for naught. Even now...I'm not sure if I could go home."

"You will always have a place here in mi corazón."

"Home is where you make it missy. You don't need a place for it to call home. Heh, even this group of stone lickers, I feel well at ease." Derek said, taking a swig of whatever was in his cup.

"You...have a point there I guess. It doesn't stop me from missing my family though."

"You will see them again mi niña. Of that I swear."

"Then at this point you have more faith in that than me."

"Nia! You're awake. How do you feel?" Alistair said, coming by and already eyeing the cheeses on the bench.

"Meh." Leliana giggled behind him.

"That is all you have to say after being reborn?" She asked.

"It wasn't a life changing experience or anything. I got killed, got back on my feet, no big deal."

"Of course because anyone can jump from a dying wound like nothing." Alistair said sarcastically.

"Exactly. So what are we going to do now?"

"Eren and I have talked into traveling to Orzammar. We were waiting for you to wake up to continue our mission but..." Alistair stopped.

"But what?"

"Alistair's armor was shredded to pieces after we fought against Levi's nugsack of a grandma."

"Not only that, Eren's shield nearly cracked in half during the assault of demons when we tried closing the rip in the fade." Alistair said, rubbing his face.

"We're only staying because we need to do our repairs. Mikhael has also decided to give us new weapons that are of higher quality than the ones we have been using." Leliana said.

"Your suit of armor was also torn apart as well." Derek said.

"And then we'll be leaving." Alistair said.

"Well at least we have a plan." Eren came and walked over to our group. I looked the other way, not wanting for our eyes to cross.

"Oh is that the Grey Warden armor that Sophia wore?" Alistair said. I looked at it and it was the breastplate with the Grey Warden symbol on it.

"Yes. Nia." Eren said. I looked at him and he pushed the armor toward me..

"Put this armor on."

"What?"

"Well the last person that wore it was a woman and you're the only one here that wears medium armor." Alistair said.

"Ah such a shame I won't be wearing it." Derek complained. Eren looked at me in the eyes.

"I'm not wearing it."

"Your armor-"

"Yes I know it was destroyed, so sad but I'm not wearing this armor. This is a Warden commander's armor. I'm not a Grey Warden."

"Why does that even matter?"

"I'm not a Grey Warden!"

"You need a replacement armor and this-"

"Mikhael can make me something else I'm not wearing it."

"Put. This. Armor. On."

"I'm not going to wear it! I'm not a freaking Grey Warden! It's the principle of the armor! I haven't pledged myself to you guys. I didn't gargle and spit out Darkspawn blood. I'm normal, or normal-ish. I'm not putting on the armor. Give it to Derek, look at him! He's drooling over it!"

"Uh what!? No, no, I was just, uh..admiring it!"

"See!"

"You will put this armor on or so help me-"

"God, this isn't going anywhere. I'm not putting it on!"

"Put it on!" Eren roared at me. I unconsciously took a step back. Leliana cleared her throat and walked away. Derek and Alistair were almost glaring at him and Zevran stepped towards me, his hand near his daggers. The way Eren roared at me brought back unnecessary memories of constant fighting and my inability to stop them. I couldn't stand there anymore. I shoved Eren out of the way.

"Hey!"

"Leave me the hell alone!"

"Nia-"

"I'm sorry Leliana but, please." I ignored her small hurt look. I felt their glances as I stomped away. I took a small trail that went around the fortress. I passed by Levi who looked the other way. Ok depressed time is over. Rage was all I felt. Hot tears fell from my face as I stopped and leaned against the wall. The rage was pouring out of my very body. I wanted to punch something and the wall was the closest thing to me. I growled and punched and kicked the wall. It hurt the more I did it and my knuckles started to breath. I growled as the wall became slick with my blood. The last punch slid from the stone and made me fall on my knees on the snow. I hissed in pain as the snow touched my hands. Red blood on pure white snow. The rage left again and all that was left behind was my emptiness. I heard someone walk up to me and I looked up to see Zevran.

"I do not think that stone against your knuckles is a good way to let out your frustrations." Zevran said. I used my palm to wipe at my eyes. I didn't want to make a bloody smear on my face. I cleared my throat to make sure my voice didn't break.

"What do you want Zevran?"

"Absolutely nothing. Can't I just marvel at your gorgeous tear stained face?"

"Zevran, stop it and tell me why you're here." Zevran put his hand in front of me. I sighed and took it. I hissed when he pulled me up, my new wounds bleeding some more.

"Ay mi niña, look at what you have done to yourself." Zevran said, pulling out a small handkerchief and wrapping it around my hand. He had another one for the other hand. I sniffled as he wrapped my hands. "Why have you refused the armor that Eren granted you?"

"It's the principle Zevran. Grey Wardens stand up for a set of ideals. They follow a set of rules. They're not just a group of people, they're a force. I'd be stepping on them if I wore it. Figuratively. Thank you." I said, rubbing my knuckles.

"I do not think that dead men would be very adverse for someone such as yourself wearing it. You have already proven yourself to our little group of misfits. You did save Eren, no? Maybe he is trying to show his gratitude. You are not a Grey Warden, but you have shown much courage on this journey. I believe that Eren wanted to establish that with you, no?" Zevran said, taking my hand and kissing where it hurt. I shook my head as he did it. Zevran had a point.

"That makes sense but why didn't Eren just say that instead of shouting me to put it on?" I wondered.

"Perhaps he feels a sense of awkwardness. Morrigan has said that he is the reason you are here and not in your home. Not only that, I have heard you pushed him away when you awoke. He saved your life and you reprimanded him."

"It was still stupid of him to yell at me." Zevran laughed.

"That is true. Come now, we cannot have infighting in our group. I know you would not want this to fester in between you to." I stared at Zevran and scowled.

"Why are you making so much sense? I don't like you now."

"Oh? Have I ruined my chances into sneaking into your bed tonight?"

"You weren't invited anyway."

"Alas, you break mi corazón, mi niña preciosa."

"You did help me though so you do deserve something." Zevran raised his eyebrows and I pulled him into a hug. He tensed up slightly but I didn't want to make him feel awkward. I gave him a tight squeeze before letting go. Now that I think about it, it's been a while since I had a close touch like that. I was a really physical person, especially with my family. I haven't been able to express myself in that way for a really long time. "Thank you. Come on, I have to say sorry to Eren. Even I don't like apologizing, grr." Zevran just laughed at me. We walked back. I rubbed at my knuckles since they were throbbing. I had to ask Talen or Wynne to heal these for me. Derek and Alistair were talking to Eren in a hushed tone when I walked up to them.

"Eren." He looked at me and he had that same look from when he came back from Ostagar.

"Nia I'm-"

"I'm stopping you right there. I'm sorry Eren. I overreacted and I didn't mean to shove you." Eren shifted his weight awkwardly before Derek slapped him on his back.

"I'm sorry as well. I didn't mean to raise my voice."

"What this hot head was trying to tell you before is that the armor represents something big and he wanted you to wear it since you save his life. It doesn't matter if you didn't drink the blood missy, you're an honorary Grey Warden to us."

"Just without the being able to sense darkspawn thing." Alistair said. I chuckled.

"I know and thank you."

"You won't wear the armor will you?" Eren asked. I sighed and shook my head.

"No. I respect you guys too much to do that. I know that you wanted to give me the armor to me in thanks for what I did but, on a personal level, I can't accept it. Just draw sticks for it or something. I'll just ask Mikhael for a set."

"Good now that we've clear that up, have you tasted this? It is delicious." Alistair said, shoving a small piece of cheese near me. It made me really laugh. I saw Talen and Wynne come down from the fortress.

"What's happening here? Is that the armor that Levi's old grandmother had on? What's it doing here?"

"Eren tried giving it to missy over here. She didn't accept though."

"No marriage bells in the near future huh?" Talen said.

"Oh God, don't even mention that." Talen smirked at me before noticing the bloody handkerchiefs on my hands.

"What did you do to yourself this time?"

"She decided to reacquaint her knuckles to the stone." Zevran said.

"Ha, ha, so funny."

"Always trying to get into trouble, give them here." I gave my hands to Talen and he healed them up for me. "Try not hurt yourself next time."

"I'll try not to. Thanks. Now let's see if Mikhael has some armor around for me."

* * *

**Shout out to NinjaKichi, Rachaelmc, minshe, dragonlover721, and Astyan Askar for favoriting/following this story! :D**

**redrosemary: **_He really cares for Nia. He wouldn't want her to die.  
_**KrystylSky: **_Yes Poor Eren but he was able to save_ her.  
**EG: **_Unfortunately I haven't been playing too much of inquisitor since this story has taken much of my time. I had to replay Origins to make sure I got everything right_ xD  
**Chaosrin: **_My mind has already went to the Inquisitor game, but nothing like that is going to happen xD_  
**efdfd, Guest, ZA: **_Thank you your reviews!_

**As you can see, reviewing is really making this story go full on forward! Every time you review, I give you a piece of internet candy! :D**


	18. Half and Half

9:30 Harvestmere 19th

It's been a few days since I wrote in here. It has taken a while for our armor and weapons to get made. Mikhael only agreed on it since we did give him a good place to work with. That and we helped in cleaning around the fortress.

The first day after the whole me dying incident, went by ok. Eren, Alistair, and Sten went to get more game for us. I was just out and about, cleaning and taking out all the broken pieces of furniture out.

I was making a mound of rotted out miscellaneous items when I saw Morrigan trying to further teach Talen his shapeshifting. He was trying to turn into a Raven. Wynne was off to the side fixing up a shirt for me. My previous shirt was torn to shreds along with my armor.

"No, you are not gathering the proper form. You cannot change if you just imagine it. You must feel the feathers, your talons, again." Morrigan said.

"I keep on trying but being a bear and then being a raven are two separate animals!"

"Then tis would seem your reputation of the greatest apprentice would be false, that you boasted before." Talen grew red and sat down, his head in his hands. He was trying so hard to focus on it.

"It almost looks easy the way they were going about it." I said, sitting next to Wynne.

"Talen has said they have extra time in the fade to focus on his talents. Doing it out here, though, would require much more focus."

"At least he can turn into a bear." I saw Zevran toss a shamble of a table down the stairs. I went up to recover some of the pieces.

"This tower es bastante sucio."

"No kidding. Come on, let's get this over to the pile I've built."

"How are you feeling hoy mi niña?"

"Yesterday I was feeling 'eh' and today I feel 'meh' so there's a slight improvement." Zevran chuckled. I heard some squealing coming from the gate and I saw Alistair, Eren, and Sten coming back with a few more of Levi's family. There were a few more adults and some children. What looked like to be a nephew of sorts, hugged Levi at his stand. The kids running around the courtyard.

"Wow, they're really moving all in here huh?" I saw Leliana come out with more junk to put into the pile.

"It seems so but to be in a fortress that was once haunted and in utter disarray? I could think of worse places." Zevran said.

"It is not so bad. We still have running water here, there are bound to be mines that Mikhael can use as well. Now that the caves are able to lead inside, they will be able to rebuild their name again." Leliana said.

"Well at least they have all the space they can have for their family."

"We were able to catch another deer." Eren said, Sten having dragged it. He went up the stairs to put it away in our makeshift kitchen inside.

"So nothing else happened while we were gone? No Archdemon peeking in? No abominations or demons?" Alistair said.

"Nope, nothing. Hey Talen! We got a bunch of stuff out here that needs burning!" I shouted. Talen growled as Morrigan complained about him again. He walked over to us and we all took a couple of steps back. Talen cracked his knuckles, then one hurt so he waved in hand in pain. There came out a cone of flames and all of the stuff began to burn. We got a few 'oohs' and 'ahhs' from the small crowd.

"Muahah! Burn!" I laughed and Leliana giggled next to me. I saw Alistair shift slightly and I saw him take a small glance at Leliana. I took a mental note of that. I dressed up the deer later on and we made a small grill outside. It was chilly with the light wind. Everyone was around taking a few bites here and there. Levi and his family was moving a few more cots so they can stay there. I was flipping the meat with the fire going.

"You're going to make us all fat Nia." Alistair said, savoring his piece.

"I have to admit, you do good missy."

"It's not that hard guys. Cooking is simple. All you have to do is know how the meat feels and looks when it's done. Herbs and spices are tricky."

"The meal is delicious either way." Wynne said.

"Thanks."

"You're not going to have any?" Talen asked.

"I'm not that hungry..."

"Eat, you must keep your strength. We will not be staying here for much longer." Sten said. I sighed and took a piece of meat. I was hungry but, at the same time, I didn't have much of an appetite. My mind kept on straying to my home even though I tried to focus on the mission before us.

"How are we on your armor and weapons anyway?" Talen asked.

"The Warden armor is going to take the longest since Alistair needed to be fitted for it." Eren said.

"Lucky bastard." Derek mumbled into his meat.

"The weapons that Levi brought as already been giving out to everyone. We have most of our armor done. We're just waiting on Nia's and Alistair's."

"And then we're going to be skipping to Orzammar right?" I said.

"Heh, can't believe I'm going home since the incident."

"What incident?" Wynne asked.

"Oh well before I came out of the Deep Roads and into Denerim, I was part of the Carta. That's the gritty underworld in Orzammar. I was born Casteless, that's what this tattoo on my face means. I had no place and I was worth less than dirt. Then my mother had my sister Rica. That's when I knew I had to get off my lazy bum and get to work. My mother was a slosh and I raised my sister but raising a kid, I needed money. So I got into the Carta. I started to bust knees, smash people's faces in to get what the boss wanted. I did that for many years and I got good at it. Eventually I got an opportunity to go into the Provings. Basically what you surfacer's call Tourneys. In order to appease the Ancestor's, we fight to gain honor. Of course if you were a warrior caste, castless are barred from them. We went to the man that we had to make sure would win and, wouldn't you know it, he's passed out drunk on the floor. Someone had to make sure that he would win. So Leske, who was my partner at the time, told me that I should go and fight in the guy's place. So I donned the armor and went out. Everything was going well, I had won against all my opponents. Then the sodding drunk came out into the arena and they took off my helmet."

"It almost sounds like the story of Aveline and her tourney." Leliana said.

"Yeah but I didn't die. Instead Beraht got me, put me in the prison along with Leske. I was able to choke the guard and get the key. I knew the passages from memory. I remembered a small opening to the Deep Roads. Leske wouldn't follow me. So I braved it on my own. I got out, came to the surface, did some odd jobs, and got landed in Denerim as a stable hand. It hurt that I had to stay away but I was able to keep in contact with my sister at least. Until Duncan came and took me away from Denerim."

"Then you came to the Circle, got me, then we met Eren, and now here we are." Talen said.

"Grey Wardens! Hah! Oh wait until Orzammar gets a load of me now!" Derek guffawed.

"How is that funny?" Zevran asked.

"Grey Wardens are only next to the Ancestor's in terms of respect, elf. A casteless dwarf like me all the way up there? They wouldn't believe it."

"Well it's getting late. I'm going to head in." I said.

"Would you-"

"No Zevran." That night I had nightmares, bad ones. I'd rather not write them down.

The second day I fared better. Mikhael took my measurements and worked on my armor. Alistair's would be coming later. My focus got better when I cleaned along with the kids. Leliana helped me along with the kids. I kept on sneezing since we were sweeping and dusting all the dust and filth.

"Oh God my nose is getting stuffed up." I said. Wynne chuckled.

"It's best for you to go out. We'll be fine here."

"But it's so cold outside." I whined.

"It's either go out there or stay in here, your choice." Leliana said.

"Mmm, fine. I'm going out." I opened the door and Alfred came running in. I heard the laughter of the kids. It almost broke my heart hearing them. I came out and looked off the edge. Morrigan was gone using her raven form. She didn't like staying here since there was more people. Derek and Levi were talking in one place. Eren and Alistair were sparring against each other. Sten picked up a few books and was thumbing through them. Talen and Zevran were out hunting. I decided to go down the stairs and watch Eren and Alistair fight each other. I wasn't too interested in it though.

"Gah!" Alistair fell to the ground when Eren made a low sweep.

"Not bad, but you fight too predictably." Eren said.

"Alistair's not predictable, you just like to fight dirty." I said from my bench.

"Well in a real fight, anything goes. Here." Eren helped Alistair back up. "These swords are expertly made. They feel right in my hand."

"As they should." Mikhael shouted from his smithy.

"I'm going to go see what Alfred is doing." Eren said, passing by and patting my head. I sighed and stared out into nowhere.

"What are you thinking about?" Alistair said, sitting down next to me.

"Nothing."

"Absolutely nothing?"

"Pretty much. All this waiting is making me anxious. I want to get out of here."

"I don't blame you for it. You went through a life changing experience."

"Yeah."

"You don't want to talk about that?"

"No. That's why I'm not thinking of anything. I'd rather keep it out of my mind. I'll get to it when I'll get to it." I said, rubbing my face. "So topic chance, how did you win the armor? Eren never told me."

"Oh that. We drew sticks. Whoever got the biggest one won. It was only in between Eren, Derek, and I. Derek was disappointed but he told me 'Rules were rules.' I'm surprised he let it go that easily especially how his society views Grey Wardens."

"Derek has a lot of respect for the Grey Wardens. There's got to be a reason that you got the armor instead of him. I think he's going to be glad on going back a Grey Warden anyway. We do have the papers stating that you guys are bonafide Grey Wardens." Alistair laughed.

"That is true. Well, how about you spar with me?"

"Alistair I don't have armor."

"Oh that's right."

Come the third day, all I wanted was to leave. So I decided that I needed some air and went out of the caves with Alistair, who didn't want to keep on annoying Mikhael with the armor.

"Ugh, I can't wait anymore! All we do is help Levi clean and just wait on Mikhael. I know he's a super good blacksmith, but I'm so bored!" Alistair laughed at me and I shoved him.

"Don't jinx yourself. I would hate to have a bear come up behind us."

"I want to put all of this behind us, as in 'we're leaving and goodbye' behind us.' Oh look some elfroot."

"We did good work here in Soldier's Peak though. We defeated demons, closed shut the rip in the fade, killed an extremely old woman and man. All in a day's work."

"Yeah, you guys did that. I died and lost my one way home. Now? I'm not even sure when I'll get to go home."

"Well, there's that too..." I saw a rose bush that had buds growing on it with elfroot right next to it. I picked the elfroot and Alistair was looking at the roses.

"Thinking about anything?"

"Huh? Oh the rosebush reminded me of a rosebush I saw in Lothering. It had only one and it was beautiful. I picked it later and I have it still, tucked away in a small journal. I thought, how could something so beautiful still bloom in a world that's plunging into darkness?"

"That's nature Alistair. If you think about it, even if we were all gone, life would still go on. No dwarves, no elves, no humans, no qunari? Nature will just take it's course."

"Unless the blight takes it's place and destroys nature."

"Well that's why you're here right? Grey Wardens combating the blight and saving the world?"

"Sometimes I wonder if we'll be able to do it in time. The darkspawn are encroaching bit by bit as we speak and if we can't get our forces in time?"

"Then we'll fight to the last man. Come on, it's starting to get dark and I don't want to go through the caves in the dark."

We finally got to the fourth day and all of our stuff was done. We couldn't get enough helmets for all of us, but we made due. I was just glad to get out of there.

I got my pack settled and I put on the armor that Mikhael gave me. Medium armor, chainmail, silverite. Very high tier stuff and it fit marvelously. I was so glad to leave. Levi even gave us one of his wagon's and horse to help with our travels. I heard a knock to my door.

"Hold up I'm almost ready."

"Tis I." I gave the door a confused look as Morrigan pushed open the door.

"Hey Morrigan, this is weird. I thought you were waiting for us at the mouth of the exit of the cave."

"I was."

"Oh ok, so why are you here?" Morrigan gave me a surprised look.

"You really do not feel a difference in your person. I would suspect after four days you would sense something."

"Sense what exactly?"

"You are not completely human anymore."

"...Wait, what?"

"After the spirit healed your body, a part of it settled in you, in order to complete your healing. You have been walking around with the energy of the fade, nearly pouring out of your being."

"Is that bad?"

"Not as you would hope. Demons would likely attack you more often than the others."

"So I'm a demon beacon? That kinda sucks."

"In part but the healing that we have done to you can be expedited by your newfound person."

"And I heal faster? Ok that makes things better."

"May I have your permission to examine you?"

"Morrigan I don't roll that way."

"Oh do not jest like the older Grey Warden. I am asking you politely, if you would like, I would force it on you."

"Ok, ok, go ahead." Morrigan came closer to me and tried to put her hand on my head. As soon as she focused some mana into me, there was this great shock. She hissed in pain and recoiled. I felt a burn from the top of my head. I squished where it hurt but I felt all the hair there.

"What the hell? That hurt. You ok?"

"I am fine but this has confirmed my suspicious; you are no longer human."

"So is this a bad thing? Am I going to turn into an...abomination?"

"I do not think so. The spirit that was in your service was no demon, but it was not a spirit of the fade. Twas a being that even I cannot identify." I had an idea.

"Well, you see in my world we have spirits and demons too. The thing is, they are really different from what you guys have here. You normally can't see them, only people with the gift can. Then there are ones that we call Angels. They are guardians and when you pray, they tend to come. They are sent by the God that we believe in."

"So you think that Halo was one of those spirits?"

"I'm just guessing here. I might have faith but I seriously doubt that one of them followed me here."

"And yet you are standing when you should be dead."

"True but I guess I'll never know at this point."

"I would like to do a series of tests on your person, to see whether this spirit has given you any power that might be to our advantage."

"You think that I might be able to use Halo's power in battle or something?"

"There could be a chance that tis possible."

"Alright."

"Good. Seek me out in the fade when you are there."

Now that I realized it, I think that was the first time me and Morrigan actually had a real conversation. Out of all the members of our little party, Morrigan is always apart from everyone. She either hung out with Talen or Eren.

I knew why she was interested in the changes. It was an advantage for her when it came down for Morrigan to make the Grey Warden's choose during the Archdemon fight. I knew of her plans but I did want the GWs to live. I'll have to make sure that this will go through. I put away my stuff and headed out the door. I came down the stairs and found Derek and Alistair together. The Grey Warden armor was in Alistair hands. Poor Derek was literally drooling over it.

"Hey guys. Mikhael finally finished it?"

"Yes. What do you think?"

"Looks awesome."

"And now we'll be able to head off to Orzammar and see my kid sister."

"Your sister is younger than you? Wait a minute, how old are you?" I said. In game, the dwarf commoner was younger than his sister. Huh, looks like not all things were true.

"32."

"32!? You look way older." Derek slapped me on the back again.

"Mind your elders, missy."

"How old are you?" Alistair asked.

"Never ask a woman her age kid."

"Nah, it's fine. I'm going to be 25 soon."

"Oh so you're older than me."

"Actually we should be the same age. I'm 24, next month it's my birthday."

"You look younger than what you really are."

"I try. You need help with that armor?"

"Please?"

"Alright, let's go over where it's not crowded." I started to put on everything, making sure all the belts and buckles were they were supposed to be.

"How do you know how do to all of this?"

"I was Eren's handmaiden at one point before he trained me. To spite me, he would make me dress him. If I got something wrong, he'd make me do it all over again. That's not too tight is it?"

"Just a little. Really? And you never once, you know?"

"Alistair your face is turning red."

"But the way he looks at you-OW"

"Remember what I talked to you about? Good."

"Well there is also the thing where you can't go home any-OW!" I scowled but loosened his chest plate.

"I know that..." I didn't want to think about it. I just had to focus for the time being. There was no time to grieve.

"...Do you want to talk about it?"

"There's nothing to talk about it."

"Weren't you the one who told me that you have to let your feelings? Hm?" He said as he poked me on the forehead. I scowled. "Come on. You've had that sad face since you came back. You haven't laughed, you haven't smiled. Everyone is worried for you, except for Morrigan. You can talk to me. I even cleaned my shoulder for you." I punched him in the arm.

"You don't understand. I can't let it out. Not now. I have to be strong."

"If you let it fester, it'll just get harder."

"I know! I know..." I felt the lump in my throat again, but I cleared it away. "I know that more than anyone else, but I can't have a mental breakdown now. I have to be strong."

"For who?" I just stared at Alistair and I just wanted to let it all out right there and then, but it wasn't just me not being able to go home. It was the people I wasn't able to save. The people I had to kill. The man in the snow, Oriana, Niall...

I coughed and sobbed at the same time, but this wasn't the time for this. I had to be strong.

"Nia..." I looked away.

"Just give me a second." I took a deep breath and a few tears came down. I wiped away and felt that ball of emotion settle back down. "See? I'm fine. Now that we have your armor on, let's go and see if we got everything so we can leave." Alistair gave me a concerned looked before going over to check the wagon. I took a page of my journal and ripped it off. I had to write this down, I had to make sure I wasn't going to break.

I had to stay strong. I'm fine. I filled the whole page with that phrase. It had to stay in my mind. It was me. I am fine. Alfred found me on the bench writing furiously. He whined and I patted him.

"I'm fine Alfred."

He whined again and his ears were down. He tried to nuzzle me. I scratched his neck. I have to be strong. I finished writing my page and I read it. I read it over and over again before I felt it take place. Then I crumpled up the paper and threw it over my shoulder. Everyone was gathered at the wagon besides Morrigan who was already waiting for us at the cave exit.

"Thank you for all you've done for us Levi." Eren said, giving him a handshake and a pat on the back.

"I should be the one thanking you for help clearing my name and for this fortress. I'll make sure that all the merchants who pass by here know of what you've done."

"Thank you Levi. Take care of yourself."

"And you as well."

I looked at the wagon and the horse. The wagon was able to fit about 4 people, plus the driver. That was also including all of our packs. It could probably fit more, but we did have to lug around a few things even after putting away Cailan's armor and Duncan's swords. Derek was handling the horse. Wynne, Leliana, Eren, and Zevran were all on it. Talen, Alistair, Sten, Alfred and I were walking. We went through the cave system and, when we got out, I heard a raven cry. A black one flying over our heads. As we walked, I kept hearing Zevran talk to Wynne about her magical bosom. I can tell that she was on her last nerve.

"Soooo, how long do you think it's going to take us to get to Orzammar?" Talen said.

"About a week. This wagon will help us. Now that you all don't have to carry around our packs. Unfortunately, I think Wynne might blow everything up before we get there." Derek laughed. Alfred was at my side again. Every single time my mind wandered to my family, he would stick his nose in my hand and whine. This dog really is too smart for his own good.

"Eren, would you be mad if all of us decided to kill Zevran, right here and now?" Leliana asked.

"Just try to keep the maiming to a minimum, I would hate to sleep in a bloody cot." Eren said.

"Now, now, ladies, I know you want to have a turn but I wouldn't mind if all of you ravished me at once. And if I might be so bold Eren, I wouldn't mind it if you would join."

I heard a definite slap from one of them. Zevran was kicked out and Talen took his place. Of course that didn't stop Zevran from hitting on me or Alistair.

"Please mi niña, you are in need of ravishing."

"I'm in need of something, but ravishing is not one of them."

"Then Alistair if you do not mind-"

"Please don't even finish that sentence."

We traveled mostly in silence after that. I hummed a little bit while Alfred kept on running ahead and coming back to us. We kept on going even after it turned dark and then settled in a clearing that we found

"You are still sad aren't you?" Leliana said. We still shared the same tent even after we got more from Levi. I scowled and continued writing. "You cannot hide it from me. Your face is extremely expressive all the time. You have shut down. I have not heard you laugh in a long time."

"Is it really that bad that I'm not happy all the time? Can't I just be sad at the fact that I probably won't see my family again?"

"Being sad is good. Hiding it is not. You must let out your emotions. Nothing good can come from letting it build inside."

"I know. I've always been reminded of that when I was home. The thing is, that's just how I am. You didn't grow up with a mother that always got angry at you if you were anything but happy. I bottle up my feelings. It's easier for me to do that. Every now and then, I'll give a good cry to let it out. But right now I can't. Eren needs me to be there for him, so I have to be strong."

"I do not remember that Eren made you promise something like that. You are just using that as an excuse, yes?" I threw my pillow at her.

"Why are all of you making so much sense? I guess that just makes me crazier since my mind refuses to listen to all of you."

"We worry for you. All of us do, in our own little way. In a way, you have become the mother of the group."

"I thought that was reserved for Wynne?"

"Wynne is more grandmotherly than motherly. Unlike Wynne, you scold us when is needed. You are harsher yet give us the most praise when something goes right. In face, you remind me more of my mother while Wynne reminds me of Cecile." I felt my face flush. "Not only that, you are always trying to regulate our time here in camp to make sure that all of us are able to relax appropriately. You give jobs to those who you know can do them well. You know our strength and weaknesses, and apply each of us to what we are all good at. You do this subconsciously. We are all worried for you. I know what it feels like to never return home. You must remember that you are not alone."

I sighed, feeling my lip tremble. I bit it so that I wouldn't continue on. She had a point. I can't be moping around like this. Sooner or later my behavior is going to cause an accident some way. Then my guilt will just grow.

"I'll...try to let it out, little by little. I mean, I can't be having any mental breakdowns anytime soon, you know?"

"As long as you'll try. Now, don't be up too late writing in your journal."

I tried not to, but well my eyes are starting to get heavy. Time to hit the pillow.

* * *

**We are at 6000 views guys! That is amazing! Also the whole Zia thing is really funny. Zevran and Nia, Zia? I would never had guess that someone would do that.**

**Shout out to Wollerosesekaufn for favoriting and following this story!**

**redrosemary: **_I would love to think of him as Micheal. My mom always had dreams of an angel protecting me that was Archangel Micheal in her opinion, but he could just be a random_ angel.  
**KrystylSky:** _You'd be the only one. Everyone is rooting for Zia_ xD  
**Biorr the old: **_Although that would be awesome, I won't do that. **SPOILER ALERT: **Nia won't become a Grey Warden on the account that other stories have already followed that route. Not only that, there would be implications when a spirit and a human join together_ _  
**Guest:** _Love your double reviews as always :3 Zevran really does lol its awesome that you got a kindle! I prefer my books hard copy_ :3  
**ZA: **_I have postponed my DAI adventure for the story actually ;^_^ I'm on a save on Origins to make sure I get everything right in this story, so It'll be a while before I get to DAI again. Thank you for your rating! Why didn't you give it a 10!? JK I know I still got some work to be done on this fic_ :3  
**EG:** _Funny enough I actually read Zia instead of Kia xD  
_**efdfd: **_Thank you for that! I try to keep the characterizations as close as possible :)_

**Please Review :3**


	19. Traveling Part 2

9:30 Harvestmere 20th

After almost a whole week of not dreaming about the fade, it came again last night. It looked different. Now that I thought about it, this should be the first time that I came here since the accident. It looked clearer. I didn't have that blurriness from before. I could see small wisps here and there. If I could focus enough, I could even see white forms out in the distance. I wondered if this was the side effect of a part of Halo becoming a part of me. Too bad it only made the fade clearer and didn't make me a mage. Oh well, I can always dream.

The fade was showing me the camp that we made for the night. I saw the tents and the fire that wasn't moving but was still there. It was weird. I went over to the fire and had my hand over it. There wasn't any warmth. I even put my hand through it and I wasn't burned. It was extremely odd. I remembered that Morrigan told me to find her in the fade so we could work on this Halo power. I didn't know how to even achieve that. I only recently was able to find people in the fade. Well more they would find me.

I kept looking over to my right shoulder to where Halo used to perch. It felt weird that I was alone. No one to be here when I would cry, or vent. I was alone and nothing can change that. I didn't dwell on it for too long. I had something to do. I walked away from the camp to look for Morrigan since standing around wasn't going to do anything.

I walked into the couple of trees that were near our camp. I reached what looked like a river. It wasn't moving or anything. It looked like a sheet of ice but instead of walking on it, I was just sinking to the floor. There were no ripples of anything kind on the surface. The fade is a creepy place. I saw two glowing lights close to each other in the distance. I rubbed my eyes and they were still there. This was going to take some time to get used to.

I was wondering if I should be walking toward the lights. You never know whether it was a demon or a helpful spirit. I had to walk into the weird river but it didn't go past my waist at least. When I got closer to the lights they turned into Talen and Morrigan. Talen had his famous scowl on with his eyebrows furrowed and Morrigan was looking at her nails, bored.

"About time you came! Geez, it's like this is your first time walking the fade."

"It is the first time walking without Halo. Give me a break."

"Are you ready for experimentation?"

"Sure, but I gotta let you know, I'm more comfortable with touching than being touched."

Talen's ears grew super red while Morrigan actually gave me a wary look. "Just sit down and let Morrigan mess with your head."

"Ok." I sat down as instructed. Morrigan put her hand up, but she didn't touch me yet. I looked at the ground, waiting for her hand to settle on my head but it didn't. Instead, I began to feel weird. I felt on edge. There were goosebumps on my arms. That instinct to fight or flight reverberating in my skull. I tried to keep the feeling down, but whatever Morrigan was doing, made me was to just tackle her to the ground. The air (does the fade have air?) around us was fizzy, almost filled with energy. I grabbed onto my legs. I had to control myself, but I felt like exploding. There was something inside me waiting to be left out, clawing itself to the surface.

"Woah…" I heard Talen gasp. I didn't realize I closed my eyes from the sheer pain of it.

"Stop!"

Ever seen how a really big bomb blows up and there was that shockwave? This was that but I had exploded in golden lighting. Talen had his arms up, spirit energy gathering to protect him and Morrigan was knocked on the ground. I stood up in order to help her, but I was hit by extreme vertigo. Everything spun around and there was nothing to hold to. So I promptly fell to the ground. I groaned in pain. I felt like I drank two bottles of tequila then slipped on tile, hit my head, and woke up with a cracked skull. Could you throw up in the fade? Oh I did that already. Well, I was able to at least control that part of me this time.

"What the ugh, hell you do to me?" I had my hands holding my head/push my eyeballs in. A migraine the size of Derek's hammer settled in my brain. Oh yeah, I was definitely going to feel that migraine when I woke up.

"I...tried to use one my entropy spells on your person. Tis not the reaction I was expecting. Twas more violent. What did you feel?"

"I felt like tackling you to the ground and smashing your face in. The more I waited, the more I felt something. Here, in the pit of my stomach. Something was filling up close to bursting, then I exploded? You didn't turn me into a bomb did you?"

"If I did, the explosion would leave your face hanging off a tree."

"That doesn't explain that reaction. What was that energy? It wasn't mana." Talen said. I heard him get closer to me. I felt him touch me with his foot, and he yelled and fell. "Ow!"

"I would say sorry, but I feel like my eyes are about to pop out of my skull."

"Twould appear you have an adverse effect towards magic."

"But I can still heal her."

"Magic at its standing and magic at its offensive. I believe twould require minimal effort to heal her. Now the question is, whether you will be able to control it?"

"Control it? I don't even know what 'it' is!" I finally removed my hands but everything just seemed so bright.

"Andraste's knickers! Your eyes!"

"What about them?" I was getting really worried. I couldn't see anything except bright light. Something flashed in my sight but I couldn't see anything.

"Can you see me?" It was Morrigan. There was a small shadow but everything else was extremely bright.

"No. Everything is just shining like the sun really. Well, there's a small shadow, so I think that's you." I said.

"Your eyes are glowing." Talen said.

"…What?"

"Tis true. You no longer have your pupils or even the white of your eyes. Just a ray of energy, pouring out of your sockets. I am surprised you are not feeling enormous pain."

"Oh I'm feeling it alright. It feels like my eyes are about to pop out of my skull! I'm just going to cover them for now."

"This is just weird. What are you?"

"At this point, I don't even know anymore." I whispered. The pain suddenly started to go away and I felt exhausted. The fade dream ended but I didn't wake up until after breakfast. Apparently no one could wake me up at all. When I did wake up, my head was banging cymbals against me.

"Ow..." I said, getting out of the tent. I felt pinpricks on my head and my eyes hated the light.

"Ah la bella durmiente has awakened."

"I feel horrible."

"You missed breakfast." Leliana said. "Here is some bread that I had."

"No thank you Leliana. If I eat that, I'll probably throw it up later. Wynne?" I whined.

"Oh what is it Nia?"

"My head hurts a lot." Wynne shook her head at me and place her glowing green hand on my head. It instantly took away the pain. "Oh that is so much better." I wiped away the pain tears from my eyes and Wynne looked at me with a weird expression.

"What?"

"How is that possible?" She mumbled.

"Is something wrong?"

"It...when I healed you, I barely used any of my mana. How curious."

"Oh that, well Morrigan told me that I'm not really human anymore."

"You still look beautiful mi niña."

"Thanks Zevran but that's not the point."

"No I understand. Your presence feels like the fade now. I assume that spirit integrated itself within you to help bring you back."

"Yeah, how did you know?" Wynne gave me a small smile and I did a silent 'oh.' I completely forgot that the same thing happened to her.

"Come on everyone! Orzammar is not going to walk itself to us!" Derek shouted.

"Thank you Wynne and...I won't tell anyone."

"Thank you Nia." We packed up our stuff and I saw Talen and Morrigan talk to each other in her own separate camp. I heard their raised voices as they came closer to the rest of the group.

"Enough! Away with you! I have more important things to do than to train you some more." Morrigan shouted. Talen did his little scowl and helped put away our packs in the wagon. I gave him a raised eyebrow and pointed with my head at Morrigan. He just scoffed at me. I got into the wagon along with Leliana, Alistair, and Zevran. Eren took to the horse today.

Unfortunately I missed breakfast because of what happened to me in the fade and sleeping like the dead. Since Wynne fixed my head, I was able to eat bread and some cold soup. My body felt like I worked out for a straight hour. I need to remind myself not to use that weird golden energy again or any time soon. Riding in the wagon sucked. I hated that my writing is so choppy because of it.

"I have thinking of giving our new friend a name. A befitting one to tell the tale of our band of heroes." Leliana started.

"Heroes? Don't forget that we have a known assassin sitting right next to us."

"A very handsome assassin thank you very much."

"But she cannot go without a name! Now that she's a part of our group, we will need to name her."

"She's just a horse Leliana."

"What do you think Nia?"

"I don't really know. I've never had a horse before."

"Did you not wish for one when you were a little girl? I know I did." I smirked.

"Nope. The only thing I wanted was a cat. I'm more a of a cat person really."

"You do have a lot of feline qualities mi niña preciosa."

"A cat? The way you fawn over Alfred, you made me think that you preferred dogs."

"Dogs are good but you feed them for a bit and they'll immediately like you. Cats you earn their love and it makes it that much sweeter. I used to have a cat actually. His name was Luis Miguel. He was the best cat ever." Leliana looked at me with her chin in her hand and Alistair also looked at me expectantly.

"It seems to me that our curious friends would like to hear some more."

"Oh you really don't expect me to really talk about my cat?"

"Please do. We might as well on our journey."

"We don't have anything else to do."

"Well. I got him as gift from my Tia for my communion. It's a celebration to continue on the next level of my religion. He came with his brother Bon Bon. He was just a small ball of fluff. He used to hide underneath the furniture. I was always there trying to get him out so that he can eat. Eventually he started to come out, but he didn't want to be anywhere near my family. He chose me out of everyone. For 11 years he was my constant companion, until the day he died."

"What happened?" Alistair said.

"Where I lived it would get extremely hot. We got a report of a sudden heat wave. They told us to keep our pets indoors or at least well hydrated…my cat was outside the whole day. After that day he started to rapidly lose weight. I took him to someone. His organs were beginning to shut down. I had to make my decision to either help him or put him down. I didn't have enough money for the medicine. So my brother and I took him and saw him in his final moments. I knew it would eventually happen. The older I got, the more the thought came into my mind. 'He's old. He's going to die one day.' I tried to make myself get used to the idea, but I was hoping to lose him to old age instead of…disease."

"He did live until he was 11. That is very old for a cat." Leliana said.

"True. Ah but he was a good cat. He was just so laid back. He used to sleep with me a lot. And then he would stretch out and he was so fluffy! I used to rubbed my face in his fur and the he'd purr and why are you looking at me like that?" Zevran chuckled.

"You have not smiled since the accident. It is refreshing to see you so animated after such a long time."

"Not the level of our eccentricity but I'm glad that you are still you." Alistair added.

"You are most beautiful when you smile mi niña."

"By Andraste, you are turning red!"

"Th-That's just my normal flush! Don't look at me!" Everyone laughed and I heard Eren laugh in front of us. It felt good. I couldn't remember the last time I smiled or laugh or was myself. It was always something after the other here. We kept on going with me trying to write in my journal. Leliana sang for a bit as I hummed with her. Then we felt the wagon stop.

"Hey we got a traveling merchant! Get out if you want to look through his things." Derek shouted.

"Well at least it's something different." I said. I get out of the wagon and, sure enough, there was that dwarf you sometimes encountered when you traveled. It seemed that he set up a small post next to some ruins.

"Come on." Leliana took me by the arm to look at his goods. He had a few interesting items when it came to cloth, jewelry, or miscellaneous stuff. Most his armor looked like scrapped metal. I thought that if you just put it on, it would fall off and crumble.

"It is appalling that you would carry this level of goods." Sten said. "Our merchants always made sure that our items were of good quality."

"Give him a break Sten. Orzammar is closed right now." I said, looking through his things.

"Orzammar has closed the gates?" Derek said. Oops. I didn't mean to say that. No one knew about King Endrin dying and closing the gates of Orzammar. Derek began asking the merchant some questions but I tuned everything out looking at the wares. Sten found a small painting that he was really focused on. Talen was sulking and throwing a stick for Alfred. Morrigan kept to the wagon as did Eren.

"Hm a bottle of wine. Hey Wynne, you wanna check this out?"

"Oh? Let's see…hmm…good year, seemed to be properly stored as well. I wonder how it would taste?"

"Just keep it away from me. I actually don't like red wine." I said. Leliana found a lute and Zevran was looking at the boots. From his face, I can tell that he is utterly disgusted with them.

"The boots here are worthless. It's better to give these to wolves than to sell them."

"Oooh! Cheese!"

I kept looking, not being really interested in anything. Then I saw something extremely familiar. I moved a piece of silk cloth to find an ocarina! I stared at it for a couple of seconds before picking it up. It looked like the one I bought back home, minus the blue coloring and the triforce. I made sure the merchant wasn't looking before I blew into it. I gave me a soft sound. It worked!

"Um how much for this?"

"That? 20 coppers."

"Done!" I had to make sure to keep an eye on my personal cash. My savings are almost dried up. Such is the case when you're trying to feed 4 Grey Wardens and buying a slew of weapons and armor.

"Oh, what is that?" Leliana asked.

"It's an instrument. We have these back home! Oh man, it's been so long! I wonder if I could still play it…" I kept making notes here and there and giggling like a maniac.

"You will tell me what happened in Orzammar!" Derek shouted.

"I-I told you all I know!"

"Derek leave him alone." Talen said. "Thank you for showing us your wares. Let's go." Sten paid for the small painting and I gave the merchant the coppers. Derek took the reigns this time. Wynne, Sten, Alistair, and Leliana were in the wagon. I was walking this time, trying to test out all the notes and figuring out what it sounded like. Alfred was panting happily next to me.

Talen was still sulking and walking. I did notice that, when we came to the wagon, Eren looked a little disheveled and Morrigan was smirking. I could've said something but I didn't. If Eren and Morrigan got together that was none of my business. I didn't like that Talen had to hurt for it to happen, but all is fair in love and war.

I just hoped that Talen wouldn't do anything rash.

9:30 Harvestmere 22nd

Nothing big has happened while going to Orzammar. We found a couple of bandits fighting amongst themselves. They were so busy arguing that we were able to completely pass them. I mostly walked instead of being in the wagon so I could practice my ocarina. I took a couple pages out and wrote down the notes so I'll be able to remember what I'm actually playing.

"Will you stop with that infernal racket? If you are going to play nonsensical songs, do it at the back." Morrigan complained. For once she wasn't in her raven form and she was hanging around Eren more often. As soon as she turned, I stuck my tongue out. I was way too happy just having the ocarina than for her to break my mood.

"Have you remembered a few songs?" Leliana asked, strumming her lute next to me.

"A few, but I'm going to have to practice to finally get all of it down pat. OH! Listen to this one." Thank God for The Legend of Zelda. Awesome game. I did a slow version of the song of time. A small part of me wanted the song to work somehow and get me home. Of course, it was just a simple instrument.

"That is a lovely tune." Leliana said. She replayed it on her lute. I giggled and clapped my hands.

"How are you able to even able to gain joy from such a small insignificant instrument, I will never know."

"I like music. I used to play several instruments back home. I'm a bit rusty though and that's why I'm practicing. Just you wait Morrigan, I will be making beautiful music with this soon. I need to get the rhythm back, that's all."

"What instruments did you play?"

"Clarinet, guitar, violin, and the ocarina. I'm rusty at everything though. I didn't own any of them anyway. I rented them out and played them. I eventually sold off my guitar when the kids were playing with it too much. I didn't want them to break it."

"No wonder you are so musically inclined."

"Yep and there's singing but I learn mostly through ear. I never took a class on singing."

"Yet you sing so well mi niña." Zevran said from the wagon.

"Eh, I could use improvement."

"Why must you always bring yourself down? If you are good at something, then you should be proud of it yes?"

"It's one thing to be prideful and it's another to not be good at the thing you think you're prideful about. I used to think I was good at singing but my mom and my brother were my harshest critics when it came to that. I know I shouldn't have taken it to heard but I did. I sing occasionally but not as much as I used to. Like I said at least I can carry a tune."

9:30 Harvestmere 23rd

Winter was finally settling in at this point. I woke up cold even trying to snuggle to Leliana again (note to self: try to get another pillow for a wedge between me and Leliana).

"Is it me, or is it getting colder?" I was in the wagon today with Eren, Talen and Wynne. Derek at the reigns.

"Well we are steadily getting closer to winter." Wynne said. She was fixing one of Talen's robes. I was messing with my ocarina.

"It gonna get colder since Orzammar is right in the mountains." Derek said from the front. I heard Leliana playing her lute and singing. It was a nice distraction from all the traveling we've been doing. That's the one thing that really gets me. In-game, it was just a couple of blood smears on the map until your destination. Here? Sleeping, packing, washing when you can, various conversations here and there. Sometimes we just don't even speak. It gets boring.

"Finally! Maybe…"

"What is it?" Eren asked.

"Well…I finally figured out a song that sounds awesome! You wanna hear it?"

"You're going to play it anyway."

"I'll take that as a yes."

So I did Saria's song or the song that plays in the Kokiri Forest. I did a few mistakes, but I was able to get the song for the most part.

"Yay! I did it!" I giggled and gave myself a clap.

"Why do you act like that?" Talen asked.

"Like what?"

"Like a child."

"Because I never lost my inner child. When I get excited, I get happy. Everyone always looked at me like I was strange but I didn't care. I was able to be happy at the things I loved. A lot of people seemed to forget that we are allowed to be happy at the things we like. I remember how I used to scare my friends because I would get too excited for something. I used to throw my arms and be like 'Oh my gosh!'" I laughed. Those were the times.

"That is something that many of us forget. A lesson we should take from you." Wynne said. I flushed slightly.

"It really doesn't take a lot to make me happy anyway. I think that's why I'm able to be excitable."

"That's true. I remember the screams and the maniacal laughter you had when chasing Oren throughout the castle."

"Oh yeah huh? The guards used to come running when I did that! Ah, good times, good times." Talen and Eren tensed up. Derek stopped the wagon. Darkspawn again.

We got out of the wagon and came out. The road was quiet. Too quiet.

"They're up ahead." Alistair described. We left Sten, Alfred and Leliana with the wagon in case of any bandits. Zevran came up to my side. I pulled out my daggers. Then I began to hear screaming. We all started to run. There were several wagons. I could easily count about 20 darkspawn and more were coming right from the trail. The three power houses, Eren, Alistair, and Derek charged. Morrigan placed a very cold blizzard on the oncoming darkspawn. Wynne kept summoning earth and shattering the ones that were frozen in place.

Zevran and I were going for the darkspawn that have reached the civilians. The men tried fighting, but they only had their fists and the clothes on their back. I stabbed a darkspawn in the back, before knocking him in the back of the head. Zevran kept hitting them right underneath their armor in the fleshy stomach or in the back in their kidneys or liver.

I was like Dudley from street fighter and kept knocking out darkspawn with my knuckles. Too bad I couldn't do a corkscrew punch. I heard a scream from next to me. There were two woman huddled with a few children right behind them. I felt rage course through my veins. No one tries to hurt kids and gets away with it while I'm around. I launched at the Hurlock and rolled, knocking him down the ground. I pounded his face into the ground before I felt a hit on my rib. I felt something break. I screamed in pain. A Genlock with a hammer was aiming for me. I held my ribcage. Every breath I took was hitched. No doubt a rib penetrated my lung.

"Leave her alone!" One of the kids shouted. It distracted the Genlock long enough to burrow my dagger in his stomach. I gave him a sucker punch in the face and he fell. I saw Talen ran across the field. He carefully placed his hand where the armor was dented.

Eren and Alistair were talking to a few of the civilians. There were two casualties but most survived. Finally, after Talen healed me, I was able to breathe.

"Thank the Maker that you came when you did." A woman said, coming up to me as I finally stood up.

"You're lucky that we were near here." The kids were looking up to us in awe. The woman grabbed my hand and shook it.

"Thank you! Thank you!" She went ahead and started to thank the others too.

"Um are you a knight?" The young boy asked me. He was holding onto what I assumed was his sister. I could have easily said yes, but I thought my answer was more appropriate.

"Nope. I'm a Grey Warden, but don't tell anyone ok?" I said, patting his head. He nodded in understanding. The civilians started to gather their stuff after the attack and thanking everyone.

"It seems that they are all headed to Denerim trying to outrun the Blight." Eren said, sheathing his sword.

"Killed some darkspawn, saved some people, we do good work." Alistair said.

"How's your rib?" Talen asked.

"It's fine, I'm gonna have to fix my armor. I haven't had it for a week and I'm already wrecking it."

"I noticed that you used a move that I am familiar with. You might not happen to be an assassin in disguise?"

"Oh yeah. I've been on Eren's ass for the past 3 years on a super undercover case." They all burst out laughing and Wynne only rolled her eyes.

Well at least I finally feel more like myself.

* * *

**I noticed that everyone is starting to write about DAI and I'm here like not playing the game! Grr, need to type faster!**

**Shout out to Doombug, Complete-Global-Saturation, and spidergambit for favoriting/following this story! :D**

**Wadoo: **_I do have a lot of fun teasing Alistair. He's just so cute! I also updated so fast because I got 10 reviews! The more reviews, the more chapters_ :3  
**Guest: **_Well better late than never right? I love the double reviews you always give me!_ :D  
**ZA:** _Well I will strive for that 10! :D Love your double reviews! I'm playing a qunari mage named Gaia. I haven't even gotten past the redcliffe hinterlands :( I've been so focused on the story! I probably won't be able to get there for a bit...  
_**efdfd:** _True but this is a game. In real life, no one would have such a bosom like Wynne. Thank you!_  
**Doombug: **_Well I enjoy any review whether they be short, the same, or long ones but I am glad you did so for last chapter_ :3  
**Grey Warden Dragonborn:** _At this point she only knows what I know of the dragon age world. Nia doesn't actually know she won't be a GW but in my plot as I'm writing she won't be. Unlike in game, the 4 GWs will be doing their all to make sure no one else gets tainted. You'll see once we get to the deep roads_ :3  
**redrosemary:** _Maybe it could be Zevran, or Leliana, or someone else. I'm still trying to map all the major events in my_ head.  
**KrystylSky:** _I try to see him as a male Tsundere, but he's quickly maturing from when he was a big jerk in the earlier chapters :3_

**Please Review :3**


	20. The City of Dwarves: Orzammar

9:30 Harvestmere 25th

I was in the wagon again. Derek was snoozing on my side. Morrigan was going through her mother's grimoire again. Leliana was tuning her lute. I was trying to fix my armor. The dent wasn't as bad since Derek hit it again on the other side, but it still looked bad. I had a small hammer to fix out the kinks here and there. Eren was leading the horse this time.

We've been traveling for 5 days now. I'm so glad I slept with Leliana. It was getting super cold. It was going to get even worse since we're getting closer to the mountains. Although I enjoyed these slow times, they get boring. At least I had my armor and my ocarina to occupy me. There were times where no one said anything for a really long time and all I wanted to do was shout just so I could hear something. Alfred would bark for me when he'd notice I was getting antsy. Have I mentioned that mabaris are smart? They are very smart. I heard Alistair talking to Sten about what he did when he was in the cage.

"Are you telling me that all you did, for 3 weeks in the cage, was 'I spy?'"

"It was a very long time."

I could go for a game of I spy as a matter of fact or any type of game. A children's card game perhaps. I wonder if YGO abridged has finally ended? We hit a bump in the road which caused the wagon to jump and Derek fell onto the supplies.

"The road is getting more uneven the more we travel. Are you sure this is the correct way?" Morrigan asked. Derek rubbed his face and went to sit down again.

"What, you think I'm taking us the wrong way on purpose? I know my way back to my homeland, as much as I'd rather forget about it."

"You said you had a sister in Orzammar. What she's like?" Leliana asked.

"Ah Rica? She was the light of my life. I've never been more proud of her. Her father ran out on us to go to the surface. I spent most of my time trying to raise her right. Couldn't let our sad sack of a mother to do it. Went into the carta to try to provide for her, but she got roped into it as well. I hate that Beraht made her into a noble hunter."

"Noble hunter?"

"Prostitute with a pretty name. They're dwarven woman who dress themselves all nice and pretty, spreading their legs to give the caste more heirs. We're a dying breed girly. As much as I hated it, Rica had more of a chance than me. If she sired an heir, she would be adopted by the caste along with the pup. Still, it didn't mean I liked it. From her last letter, she had mentioned that she found someone way up at the top." Derek described. He took my armor and started to work on it. I knew how to clean the stuff, just didn't know how to fix it.

"Are you happy that you're going to see her again?" I asked.

"Of course I am. I've been away for almost a year now. Ha! Wait till they see I'm a Grey Warden! They'll be choking on their own system!" Derek laughed.

-/-

We had stopped and made camp near a river. I needed to get clean so there I was shivering, but a bath was a bath. Leliana followed me out. My breath was coming out in puffs. Oh God, why must I be such a stickler for cleanliness? I tested the water. It was ice cold.

"Wah! Ok, just, mind over matter. Mind over matter. I can do this, I can do this!" Leliana was giggling at me. "You go ahead if you want to. I need to psyche myself for this."

"Oh it can't be that bad."

"Leliana, you're shaking." She gave me a mischievous smile. "Why…? Oh, no, no! Don't get closer! Ah! My towel! Leliana!"

She pushed me in the water then jumped in after me. We were both laughing and shivering like a pair of idiots. We both washed what was important with some nice herbal soap. My hair could be washed another time. I didn't get out without my revenge. I splashed water on her and tried to dunk her in it. We were wrestling for a good minute before we decided we would rather have all of our digits. We were both shaking and dried off really quickly. If there was one thing I missed, it was lotion. I dressed in my usual black attire. We both came back into camp giggling.

"You really need to do something with this hair of yours. Oh! How about I braid it again?"

"No, I'd rather have it short. One of these days I'm just going to chop it all off."

"What were you two gorgeous woman doing without me?" Zevran asked.

"Get your mind out of the gutter Zevran."

"Ah but is more pleasurable to have it in there."

"I swear everything is a double entendre with you." Leliana started to dry out my hair. I asked her to braid it simply. Once she was done, I grabbed my dagger. With a quick flick, boom, short style. I shook out my shorter hair.

"Aw, it was so beautiful." Leliana said, running her hands through my hair.

"But it got in the way. Hey Eren, how do I look?" He looked at me and patted my head.

"Not bad."

Alfred barked. Although it was much shorter now, Leliana still went ahead and gave me a good brush down. Talen and Morrigan were nowhere to be seen. One of two things is happening. Considering that I can't hear Morrigan's screams, I could only assume that she's training him. I was shivering slightly. I made sure to move nearer to the fire after Leliana was done. The fire made for a pretty good light for writing.

"Why are you always writing? It's like you're a shaper." Derek said, munching down on some hard bread.

"Writing unstresses me. Gets my frustrations out, lets out my emotions and stuff, you know? To keep my mind healthy otherwise, mentally and emotionally, I'd just break down." I said.

"You could always talk with us. We will not judge you." Leliana said.

"I might judge you a little." Alistair said and I threw a rock at him.

"I know I could talk to you guys. I could talk to you about almost anything, but have any of you have ever had kids?" They all stayed silent.

"I have. It was a boy." Wynne said. She was crushing some herbs that Leliana helped her find in the woods.

"Really? I thought mages can't get married?" Alistair wondered.

"Mages are allowed to have relationships, but they are frowned upon. A long time ago I became involved with a man, which led to the child. Once he was born, however, he was taken away from me. He would have been your age Alistair." Wynne said fondly. "I know what you are trying to say Nia and I understand. I might not fully understand your pain, for you were given the chance to raise your child. But remember that we should not dwell on our pain. We should not repress our emotions. I would not want you to go on a murdering rampage." I chuckled.

"Trust me, if I did, you'd be the last person I'd go for."

"Who would be your first?" Alistair asked.

"Hmmm…You Alistair."

"What!? Why me?"

"I'm a lot shorter than you, which means I could totally just get my knuckles and punch the royal jewels." Alistair subconsciously covered them while almost everyone laughed. I just smirked. After that, Leliana and I went to our tent. Night.

9:30 Harvestmere 26th

I woke up to frost on the tents of the camp. We easily shook it off but that meant winter was already beginning.

"We really need to buy coats or make our own. Metal can get really cold. Having burns from the cold hurt like hell." I said, shaking off the frost from the tent.

"You've gotten one before?" Wynne asked.

"Yeah and burns from fire, I've almost cut off my nail, cut myself several times on various fingers, I have a few burns scars on my arms, oh and this one time I got a water burn."

"What did you do to go through so much damage?" Leliana asked.

"I was a cook back home. I worked with hot ovens and, sometimes, sugar. Then we had cold rooms with cabinets filled with product. Those cold rooms would get extremely cold. If you leaned against something for a long time, you'll get a cold burn."

"Cold rooms? The only time it gets cold is when there is snow." Derek said.

"It's called refrigeration back home. I don't know how it works. I think the idea was that liquid goes through various metal coils that were able to make it cold? That's one thing I've never learned."

"How does your world come up with these ideas?" Alistair said, putting away all our packs.

"We don't have magic so instead we think about things. Thinking leads to inventing which leads to innovation and comfort. Refrigerators, microwaves, Air conditioning etc, etc."

"I have no idea what those words even mean." Talen said.

"And I'm not an engineer so I can't even explain anything either."

"Is everything packed? Let's get going. Orzammar should be close." Eren said. The group talked about it, Wynne, Alistair, Derek, and Zevran were in the wagon this time. Morrigan shape shifted into her raven form and went out flying. Talen hasn't gotten the hang of it yet.

"So Sten, you looking forward to finding that dude that got your sword? Derek said that we should be getting close to the bridge to Orzammar." I said.

"Of course." Sten said. Talen was still in his sulky mood. Morrigan and him haven't been really talking as of late. Actually she seemed to be avoiding him.

"Hey Leliana, what do you think is going on between Talen and Morrigan?" I whispered to her, taking out my ocarina so it wouldn't look too suspicious.

"Talen fancies Morrigan, yes? I believe that he has relayed this to her and she rebuffed him. That is a man that has, had his heart broken." Leliana whispered back to me. If that was true, sorry Talen, but better for you in the end. I played a few short songs with Leliana picking up her lute to join me. It was amazing how she was able to go along with my playing so completely. I stopped playing when the scenery looked familiar to me.

"Ha ha! There's the bridge!" Derek shouted. I saw in the distance something that was man made. Finally! I was sick of traveling! We got closer and encountered the assassins.

"About time we encountered a Grey Warden! Kill them!" They shouted. I got into position but then I saw Talen right beside me, his staff waving in the air with a small fireball, that grew bigger. Then he unleashed hell. It was a swirling fireball which melted the frost that was all around us. The horse bucked and Eren had to calm her down. After the fireball ended, there were several burned bodies on the ground. Talen scoffed and began to walk.

"Leliana? Remind me never to piss off Talen."

"Please do the same for me." We walked across the small bridge. There were many dwarven merchants outside, talking to each other. Derek look at the situation with a grave face. Eren, Talen, Alistair, and Derek all went up to the gate while me and Sten decided to pay Faryn a visit.

"Oh welcome to-Maker's breath!" I really wanted to laugh, but that would diminish Sten's presence.

"Um is something wrong?"

"What!? Oh, ahem, I'm sorry, your friend there just gave me a spook."

"Actually, my friend here has a question for you."

"A-And what may that be?"

"Where is my sword?"

"I-I don't know what you're talking about good Ser."

"There was a small man that you 'sold' a plot of land to with riches which included a qunari's sword. It's probably best that you explained to us where this sword is or my big friend here might have to force it out of you."

"I-I-I don't have it by Andraste's knickers! I sold it to a dwarf in Redcliffe."

"You better not be lying, or else we'll be back."

"I-I'm not!" He said in a squeaky voice. I heard Sten snort behind me. He liked that. I heard some fighting right behind me. Sure enough the 4 GWs were fighting with Loghain's messengers. Derek, Alistair, and Talen were doing good. There was a mage that was flinging spells. They seemed to be evenly matched until Talen went and took out fire spell after fire spell. A few of his spells went off mark and scorched Eren. The smell of burnt human wafted into my nostrils which made my stomach turn. Eren took off his right metal glove, the skin underneath it red with blisters and his face was red with irritation.

"Wynne go heal Eren. Hey! What is wrong with you?" I shouted. I looked at Talen straight in the eye but he just shoved me out of the way to go to the gate. I was having none of that. "I said hey!"

Grabbing him was the wrong response. I must have done something because, before you know it, a small shock/explosion propelled both of us on opposite ends. My short hair stood on end like I was playing with an electric socket while Talen smoked slightly. I saw Leliana run toward Talen.

"Nia, what happened?" Eren asked, helping me up.

"Are you well?" Wynne said, her hand glowing with green healing energy. I tried to stable myself but there was no point to it. I felt an extreme case of vertigo. Light blinded me for a second, but then everything came back into focus. Eren was helping me stand.

"I'm fine just...that was weird…I have no idea what happened but make sure not to let me touch Talen." Talen gave me a small glare, shaking his arm that I grabbed. Leliana patted his shoulder and said something to him. I saw his face relax a bit but I made sure that Talen and I had a wide berth after that.

"Grey Wardens, you all are to free to enter Orzammar as are your companions. Oh and Derek, try not to make too much of a mess..." The guard said, opening the doors to the Hall of Heroes.

"Whoa…" Seeing the statues of the paragons were amazing. The Hall of Heroes. They were slightly taller than Sten, and that was saying something. I saw the intricate detail, the thin lines, it was all so beautiful. The statues were smooth and shining with the lava that was running down the wall. Derek laughed.

"You ain't seen nothing yet missy."

Then the doors opened. Sure enough Harrowmont and Bhelen did their scuffle in the street.

Mr. None of it is carried in the blood and Prince that should be king. I'm not going to bother writing it because it was nearly word for word from in game.

"Ah corrupt politicians, killing in the streets, all I need is a bowl of chowder and a prostitute to call it home." Zevran joked. Of course it was after that scuffle that I just gaped and awed at the enormity of the city. I couldn't even begin to describe it. It was all too beautiful. The whole city was carved out of the stone and the cave was massive to hold all of it. The city was lit up by the lava river that was flowing underneath everything and there was constant lava flow to give more light. It was all so unbelievable. Leliana was right next to me smiling big and Wynne was nodding her head at it all.

"I am impressed." Sten said.

"Heh, surfacers." Derek guffawed.

"Atrast vala Grey Wardens and company. Derek…it's surprising seeing you here." The captain of the guard said. "So, you want to be thrown in prison now or later?" Derek cleared his throat.

"You should be careful when addressing a Grey Warden." The captain's lips became thin.

"It's true, we have official papers and everything!" Alistair said.

"Be that as it may, you better not incite anymore chaos than we already have _Warden_. We have had enough to deal with since King Endrin died..." Yes there was emphasis on the Warden.

"Ha! Wouldn't dream of it captain!"

"Come on, let's go to the assembly." Talen said. I thought there would be some more dwarves hanging around, but it was surprisingly empty in the streets. Maybe it was their night cycle? I wasn't sure.

"Wow, the city is amazing!" Alistair said.

"It is a man-made wonder, yes?"

"I have to admit, the castles up on the surface have nothing compared to this." Eren said. Alfred barked. I wasn't much of an artist, I just doodled on my off time, but my Tio would have loved this place. Leliana, Wynne, and Morrigan were interested in the marketplace. Sten had even found a painting. I couldn't help myself and decided to go through it as well.

"We'll be going to the Assembly then. Don't get into too much trouble." Eren said, pinching my cheek.

"Wouldn't dream of it." I said. I saw them go toward the double doors that led into the Diamond Quarter. I browsed through the marketplace along with the others. I saw Morrigan grabbing a mirror with jewels. Sten was looking through some of the armor that they were showing off. The place had everything.

"Wooooah!" I got excited because I had found a teddy bear. A real teddy bear!

"What has gotten you so excited mi niña preciosa?"

"It's a teddy bear! Oh how much!?"

"It's a fine piece of craftsmanship from the surface. For you pretty lady, 3 gold pieces." I groaned. That was a bit much for a teddy bear. I looked into my personal savings. I only had a couple of silvers on me.

"Argh! Why does everyone has to eat so much!? Curse you Talen!"

"Why must you agonize over this piece of fluff?" Morrigan asked.

"Because of reasons." I said. Yes I am an adult woman that loves teddy bears, sue me. Or don't. "I don't have enough."

"Why not make one of your own? You are very skilled with the needle." Leliana asked.

"I'm good at fixing things, but making things is different set of skills." I said. I longed for that teddy bear, but I sighed in defeat. "Oh well, not much I can do anyway." I was wondering if there are any part time jobs around here. Maybe I could sell a few recipes of mine. Pizza anyone?

"We should join the others. We'll have enough time to come back here." Wynne said. So off we went into the Diamond Quarter. We had to go up some stairs. The Diamond Quarter was really impressive. It didn't have a lot of the lava like the common grounds. Instead there were a few light holes up at the top. Since the top was so far away from the lava river, it was bluer here at the top and a lot cooler. It was much warmer than outside though.

"Where do you think we might find our compatriots?" Zevran asked.

"The Assembly Hall should be down here. There's the palace and I'm guessing those huge double doors are the-"

"I can't believe it! So what they don't have a king!? We need people to go against the darkspawn! Didn't they listen to me?" Talen shouted, nearly destroying the doors heading inside the assembly hall.

"Look I don't like it either, but this is dwarven politics kid. Without a king, we're nothing. We can't do anything without someone to lead us." Derek said and Talen kicked a pole.

"Hey. I take it that everything isn't good?" I said.

"The assembly is deadlocked. There are two men vying for the throne. Bhelen, the last of the Aeducan line, and Harrowmont, who was Endrin's second. We can go either or, but we need to choose someone." Derek said. I thought back to my campaigns. Bhelen is the best to go even though he will turn out to be a dictator. The thing is Derek can always ask for a boon at the end and can send men here to help.

"Who will you be allying yourself with mi amigo?"

"Why are you looking at me?" Derek asked.

"Well you are the dwarf in our little mishap group." Alistair said. Derek whistled and was about to answer before hearing someone behind us.

"Derek!" His eyes lit up and he started running past us. There was a dwarven woman with the caste mark on her cheek. Her red hair up in a bun. Derek laughed and grabbed her and twirled.

"Rica! Oh you are a sight for sore eyes! Look at you! What are you doing in the Diamond Quarter!?" Derek shouted.

"Well before you left I told you that I was meeting a noble…well, that person is Prince Bhelen." Rica said. Derek's mouth just gaped open

"Interesting." Morrigan said.

"Anyway, I've been sent to show you all to the Grey Warden quarters." Rica said. Derek cleared his throat.

"Well let me introduce you to you to everyone. Everyone, this is my younger sister Rica. Rica this is my ragtag group of misfits out to save Ferelden." Derek said.

"Nice to meet you all. Come, I'm sure you're all very tired from your trip." Rica said. Derek took his arm out and she took it. They started to talk in hushed tones and I just smiled. I noticed that Eren frowned when seeing them together. He was probably reminded of his own brother. I just nonchalantly ended up on his side and gave him a playful shove. He humphed and pinched my cheek.

The GW quarters were pretty big. The main hall was a decent size with various paintings which led into the dinning hall. It had a long table with many chairs. The rooms were lit but small blue stones. It gave everything a warm homey feeling. There were several servant dwarves cleaning here and there. They were probably sent here when the guard heard of the Grey Wardens. There was some dust clinging to everything, a nod to the fact that this place hasn't been used in a long time.

"We have enough rooms to accommodate all of you. You are free to choose as you like. There are two baths, one for the women, the other for the men." Rica explained. "When you feel hungry, feel free to ask someone to bring you something from the kitchens." The servant dwarfs looked at her with small glares. Derek just crossed his arms and looked intimidating.

"Thank you for showing us, Rica. My name is Eren, I'm a Grey Warden along with your brother. The angry one is Talen, and this is Alistair."

"So you are all Grey Wardens?"

"Not all of us. I am a lay sister of the Chantry, Leliana."

"A man of many talents, my name is Zevran."

"Sten, vanguard of the Qunari."

"You may call me Morrigan."

"Nia, nanny of Eren."

"Hey!" Alfred barked.

"That's Alfred, also nanny to Eren." Rica giggled as Eren gave me a glare.

"Well go get to your rooms. I'm sure you've all had a long journey."

"Thank you Rica, now come on. I want to know everything that has happened." Derek said, taking his sister out into the hall.

"Well we might as get comfortable." Eren said. Talen went off first. I stretched and enjoyed the place a bit more. Everyone else already went to choose some rooms. A few of the servants looked at me with curiosity. After admiring the workmanship, I decided to go and choose a room. I found one and got down to writing everything. Leliana already called me down for a bath. Mmm bath. Alright, Nia out!

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**Oh man I got a heart attack trying to look for this chapter! The good thing is I just realized that I'm on chapter 30 instead of 29. It's official, this is my longest story I've written so far. So far I have about 5 people for Zia and 1 for Neren xD**

**Shout out to Brittney89, LMary52, Shadwyn, and Orion145 for following/favoriting this story! :3**

**Biorr the Old: **_Well remember when Flemeth gave her that small marble like thing and told her to be ready for the North? :3 That's a yes_ bytheway.  
**A. zareth: **_Ah the old days of yoor when I had to worry about finals, now I just worry about bills, money, gas...Nope. Halo did tell her that he would be able to send her back home eventually, but it'll take a REALLY long_ time.  
**EG:** _I heard about that actually! I love random facts_ :3  
**efdfd: **_Thank you for your review :D  
_**ZA: **_LOL I love your pairing names xD Lelinia and Neren just flow off the tongue.  
_**Wadoo: **_Your review was probably the most wackiest I've ever read. Awesome!  
_**Guest: **_At first I was like, "OH No!" Then I saw your second review and was happy_ :3  
**chaosrin: **_I made sure to include how she looks like right up top!_

**We're already at Orzammar! You wanna read more? Review! :D Reviews give me coffee and cookies to continue writing!**


	21. Dinner Party

Day 1 in Orzammar Continued.

It's going to be a bit hard to track the days in Orzammar. The Grey Warden base that we're currently in, is in the Diamond Quarter. There are holes at the top that show the outside world so I can see the light somewhat. Still, all I know is that we have to rely on our human clock to get us through the day. I finally got to take that bath! Oh my gosh! There was a huge community bath! This Grey Warden building was built a long time ago when the order was flourishing. So of course they would have big spaces for a lot of people.

The bath was made of stone, but it was heated by the lava that coursed through the city. So it was basically a hot spring. We had a few towels in a basket and some soap with it. I took my basket and put it near me when I went in. Ah I was in paradise. The water was a little bit on the hot side but it was fine overall. Ah I felt my muscles relax. So I finally got down to cleaning myself when I heard a few voices. It was Wynne and Leliana.

"Hey guys! Check it out! Isn't this awesome!" I waved from my spot in the bath. Leliana giggled and Wynne shook her head, but with affection. They were wearing towels around themselves and soon joined me in the bath.

"Ah this water does well for my old bones." Wynne said, relaxing in the bath.

"This is paradise." Leliana groaned happily.

"This is a lot better than the freezing water huh? I love winter and stuff, but I can't take a good bath with extremely cold water." I said, passing a soap bar to Wynne.

"This is a welcome change from our travels. Even the fortress at Soldier's Peak didn't have these luxuries." Wynne said.

"Hey Wynne, you really have held up pretty good huh?" I said. It's true, she actually has a really good body for a 60 year old woman.

"Thank you."

"I guess Zevran wasn't joking about that magical bosom comment." I said. Leliana and I started to laugh while Wynne had a disgusted look on her face.

"Oh come on Wynne. You can't tell me you don't like the attention." I said. Wynne had a small smile.

"It is flattering, but it does grate at my nerves when it's all he talks about."

"You like the attention don't you?" Leliana said, giving me a splash.

"When you become a mother of two, you don't get attention like that at all." I said, truthfully.

"Not even from your husband?" Leliana shoved me. I just gave her a knowing look and she just laughed at me. After cleaning I went out and got dressed. I felt tired. I really just wanted to go to bed but my stomach said it was hungry. Rica told us if we were hungry, to go into the dinning room and ask someone. But who could I ask in here? As I was walking, there was a dwarf coming down the hallway. He looked really young, no beard, and his sand blonde hair was in a ponytail.

"Excuse me?" I said. He looked at me surprised and a bit fearful.

"Ah, yes my lady?"

"Oh I'm not a noble or anything, you don't have to call me that." I said.

"But you are one of the companions of the Grey Wardens, right? You deserve respect for what your order has done, my lady." Oh man so that's how that felt. I felt on the spot but my stomach reminded me why I stopped him in the first place.

"I just have a question; where can you get food or who should I ask for the food in the first place?"

"We are already working on a feast for all of you in the mess hall. We will be informing you once it is done, my lady." He said.

"Oh ok. What's your name?"

"Excuse me, my lady?"

"Your name."

"O-Oh, um, my name is Leto, my lady."

"Nia, it's a pleasure to meet you." I bowed and he grew extremely red before scurrying down the hallway. I smiled and continued down the hall. It felt weird that I couldn't touch the ceiling. For being small, dwarves really like heights. Soon I became lost. I never knew that this compound was extremely huge and, with the low light, everything looked the same. I was tempted to open a few doors, but I was worried that I might stumble onto something embarrassing. It would be my luck that I would accidentally catch someone getting dressed.

I couldn't just wander forever. So I prayed for luck and opened a door. It was an empty bedroom from the looks of it. I sighed in relief. But I was still lost!

"It seems that I have caught a lost mouse." Zevran said right behind me. I twirled in shock and nearly fell, if it wasn't for him steadying me.

"Jesus, can you not do that to me? I swear I'm going to get a heart attack one of these days." He just laughed at me. I looked at him up and down and realized that he was actually out of his armor for once. He was wearing regular clothes.

"Do you like what you see mi niña?" He said and I just gave him a shove.

"You're good to look at I have to admit, but I was actually surprised that you're wearing normal clothes for once." I said.

"Well we are not traveling in the dirt of Ferelden. Not only that, today is meant for relaxation. Now, what sort of business might you have in my room?" He asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Don't look at me like that Zevran. I got lost ok? I was trying my luck at opening doors. I didn't want to accidentally stumble onto someone you know? We actually have privacy in this place." I explained. That smug look on his face didn't go away though. "Stop thinking in the gutter!" He laughed at me.

"Come, I have heard the dwarves are making a feast in our honor. It would be a shame to miss the festivities, no?" Zevran said, holding out his arm for me to take it. I just thought 'what the hell?' I took it and he gave me a small smile.

"Wow you can be a gentleman from time to time huh?"

"Only with you mi niña." As we walked, the corridors started to look familiar and we ended up in the dining room. There was no one else here besides Zevran and I. I did smell something delicious wafting though. I felt something bump my leg and Alfred was there with Eren coming in the room. He was also wearing comfortable clothes.

"Stop gaping at me like an idiot." Eren said, flicking my forehead. I kicked him in the back of the knee and he almost fell. I laughed at him before he started to mess with my hair.

"Hey!" Eren smirked. It felt good. He seemed like his old self again. Alfred barked happily around us. I rubbed his face a little bit and he loved it.

"Ooh! We have a table! No more eating on rocks I take it?" Alistair said right behind us. He seemed really giddy. I guess we do live a very simple life on the road. We started to sit down. Eren sat right in the middle and I was on his left side. Alistair went to sit right next to me.

"You'd think that they would make their tables much shorter." Alistair wondered.

"What you think we can't climb?" Derek laughed. There was a servant girl following him with rosy cheeks. Talen came in with his scowl. He sat the furthest from me. The only ones that were missing were Leliana, Sten, Wynne, and Morrigan. I doubt that Morrigan would even come and join us though.

"Can you believe that they had shoes in the marketplace!?" Leliana said, coming to the table with Sten trailing behind her. She showed me the blue suede shoes with a simple ribbon. I had to admit they were very pretty, but I would say not for me. Wynne was the last to come in. She sighed contentedly on the chair.

Soon the dwarven servants started to bring in trays of meat, vegetables, bread and cups of water. Derek gave a good sniff and let out a breath of happiness.

"Ah it's a while since I smelled the good old days of dwarven cooking. Extra dirt for me!" He guffawed.

"It has been a very long time since I have had a decent meal." Sten murmured, helping himself to the mashed potatoes.

"You are correct my great Qunari friend." Zevran said.

"What my soup isn't good enough for you two?"

"You can't live off soup along Nia." Eren said.

"Ah do not take it to heart mi niña. Your comida es delicioso every single time."

"I would like some variety." Sten said.

"I'll keep that in mind." My stomach grumbled and every one had a pass at the meal. I immediately took some of the bread. It was a bit hard, but I broke it and took a big whiff.

"Ah, freshly baked bread. Hmm, slight bitterness and saltiness…Let me guess, Ale bread?"

"Oh yes it is, my lady." Leto said right behind me.

"My lady? She isn't much of one." Eren chuckled before I stomped on his foot. He cringed in pain while I gave him a smirk. So I took a bite. It was much too salty and I could tell that the ale they used was mediocre at best. It must have shown in my face.

"Is it not to your liking, my lady?" Leto asked.

"It…could be improved…" My next mission? The kitchen.

"It is nice to have this time and enjoy expertly cooked food." Leliana said.

"You saying my soup isn't expertly cooked? I'll have you know that I make it with love."

"Is that it? All you know is what herbs to use to make it taste good. Anyone with a good eye can do that."

"Is that why your soup was something from the waste of a darkspawn up in Soldier's Peak?" I almost made Alistair spit with that one. Derek laughed while Talen kept poking his food.

"Eat up you prissy bastard! It's time you put some meat on those bones!" Derek said, slapping Talen's back.

"I have enough meat on my bones. The meat on your bones could easily supply another person's." Sten snorted.

"If its meat you are talking about-" Zevran started.

"Don't, I am eating." Wynne reprimanded.

"So Derek, where's your sister?"

"Rica? She had to go visit her suitor. She only stayed so she can hear all the things I've told her. Already, my name is going around the city. 'Castless made into a Grey Warden?' Hah! That never gets old." The food was fantastic and the banter at the meal was awesome. It was like we were a big, odd family. Alfred got plenty of scraps. They finally cleared out all the plates when I decided to hit the kitchens.

Woah was it huge! There were easily 15 people working on all the food. Considering we were a big group (add to the fact that Talen, Derek, and Eren have nearly eaten us into poverty), I would say they would be working their butts off.

"Oh my lady! Is there something else you needed? Was dinner not to your expectation?" A dwarf girl said. I recognized her as the one trailing behind Derek. She has bright blonde hair, a small hook nose and pretty skin.

"Oh no, dinner was exquisite. Actually I'm here to ask about the bread. Who baked it?"

"That would be me." It was an older lady. She had her greying light brown hair in a tight bun. She had small hawk eyes and pursed lips. She definitely had some power in this kitchen.

"I'm here to say that it was subpar. The ale you used wasn't the type you should have used for the bread. Not only that, bread such as this is usually served with cheese, or have cheese bakes along with it. The cheese with a mild taste at that." Her lips became thinner and the servants audibly gasped.

"And what would a topsider know of ale bread?" She asked. I smirked. I might not be a big know it all, but I know my bread.

"Here let me show you."

So I spent most of the next couple of hours showing them, explaining to them, and having someone writing down everything that I knew about bread. Sourdough, Grain, layered, some with meat, some with vegetables, and of course, ale bread. I was in my element for once. I was also in a kitchen that had everything on hand so I could easily explain all the things I knew. The old woman in charge of the bread was called Penta and the girl that blushed at Derek was Haile.

I awed them with my skills. They were a bit rusty. I haven't actively worked in a kitchen since Highever. Even then, I wasn't allowed in the kitchens much anymore when I was made to be Eren's bodyguard. I showed them an easier way to proof bread. Proofing is basically what causing the yeast inside the bread rise by humidity. What you do is get a small room or a small cabinet, take your rolled bread and put it inside. Using water heated to release steam, this causes the bread to rise, get bigger, and poofy.

I showed them simple techniques, and explained the more advanced items. I showed them a simple recipe for bread, how to make starters and to keep them for a very long time. Penta was listening very intently. I literally showed them up and that was just bread. After it was all said and done, Penta gave me a nod of approval.

"I'll admit, I didn't think a surfacer could know so much but you have shown us a few things that we didn't know." Penta said.

"Thanks. You can use everything I've told you as well and spread the word. Food can be made delicious with a few tweaks here and there. Anyway, I've been here for a while. I'm going to be going to bed for now." Penta nodded and I went to walk to my room.

All the showing of bread really made me tired. Here they don't have candles either. They have glowstones. The stones react to fire or a spark. You can take two and hit eat other to create friction and sparks. Boom! Insta-light. It's actually quite innovative. It probably has something to do with the chemical stuff in the rock, but that's just me speculating. They give off a medium glow enough to light the room slightly. When you gather more, of course there is more light. I just had one right next to me just to write.

The city is a amazing and the people are really cool but we're not here to sightsee. We're going to need to choose the next king and, more than likely, we'll be working for Bhelen. Then there are the Deep Roads. I'm not looking forward to that.

Oh well, time to go to sleep.

Day 2

I woke up a bit groggy the next day. I felt bloated. I probably ate too much at dinner last night. It's been a while since I've stuffed my face. The food was delicious, though. I did some morning stretches and checked my equipment. I thought about taking my armor to a smith to fix out all the dents, but that would require money. Did I mention I hate Talen and his black hole of a stomach?

I checked my blades and they were getting dull from the fighting. I made a note to sharpen them later. I checked the mirror that they had and ran my hand through my hair. I loved that it was so short now. I made my way out of my room and started to make my way toward the dining hall. Then I found a room with a few books. I got curious and went in there. The books were in english but there were some that were in dwarfish.

"Cool." I made a mental note to visit this room later. I went into the mess hall and there were servants all around. Penta and Leto were there. He gave me a shy wave before I sat down.

"I realize that you have many skills that would benefit our culinary experience here in Orzammar. Might I suggest visiting the food market?" Penta said, serving me a few eggs, bread and juice.

"Food market? You actually have one here? Where is it?" I said. The bread was a lot better this morning.

"It's in the Common District. They make many foods there and have an enormous kitchen to serve to the people." Leto said. "If you know anything more, I would suggest showing them."

"Would they pay me for some recipes? I'm kinda low on my personal savings."

"I could get a shaper to accompany you so that he may write all your recipes during your stay. I have already acquired one to record everything that you have shown us." Penta chuckled. My fingers started to twitch. I may read up on a lot of useless information, but cooking and baking was in my blood.

"Then I'm totally down for it! Can someone come with me?" Penta gave Leto a boss nod. I gave him a thumbs up and to eat. Alfred and Eren came in soon after. He cracked his neck a couple of times. I gave Alfred a few scraps and a scratch behind the ear.

"Morning Eren. Got any big plans for today?"

"Haa, well I stayed up with Derek, Talen, and Alistair to see what we should do. Derek wants to go for Bhelen. Apparently his sister is pregnant with his child. If we go with Harrowmont, then Bhelen would lose his caste and his sister would remain casteless. We don't want to put his sister through that. We won't be able to meet with Bhelen yet though. Derek told us that we're going to have to go through his second, who should be in the Assembly later today. Politics. I thought I got out of this when we left Highever." He put some butter on his bread as he ate it.

"Amazing how politics seem to follow you when you're a noble huh?"

"You have no idea." Eren said, rubbing his face. I finished my juice and gave another servant my dishes. I got up so I could go to the food market when Eren grabbed my arm. "Nia."

"Yeah?"

"If you can, make some time for me. I want to talk to you."

"You're not firing me right?"

"What?"

"Never mind. Sure. I'm going to the Common Grounds with Leto right now. When I come back, we can talk ok?" Eren nodded. Alfred barked and followed me. Leto was already at the main door waiting for me. "Alright, you ready Leto?"

"Yes, let's be off." We went out the doors, Alfred at my heel. I heard the two criers slandering each other with false information about both parties. Reminded me of USA politics. Then I noticed that we were going in the wrong direction.

"Where are we going?"

"Oh, we're going to the Shaperate to get a shaper. They can record the memories of your recipes with lyrium. That way we won't forget them." Leto explained. I nodded in understanding. We were in front of two large, geometrically chiseled doors. Leto opened the door and I laid my eyes on the Shaperate. The Shaperate was a huge library with bookshelves that were taller than me. They held many tomes and there were apprentices scattering about, writing in them with glowing ink. I guessed that this was the lyrium that they used to write with. Normal people would get poisoned from it but dwarves have a natural resistance to them. They can still get affected if they ingested it.

"Be careful when staying here. Normal humans would start to feel uneasy and sick from their exposure to Lyrium." Leto explained.

"If I start to feel woozy then I'll make sure to get out." Alfred barked next to me, agreeing. I looked around the few bookshelves that were in front of me but I didn't feel comfortable after a time. Just touching the books made me get shocks here and there. My fingers were getting zapped here and there, not counting whenever I would get close a spark would cross to my body. I decided that I didn't want to get shocked all the time, so me and Alfred went outside to wait for Leto.

I saw a few apprentices coming in and a few nobles walking around outside. I walked over to the fence so I can look down into the city and I saw the Orzammar commons. There were tons of dwarves walking about in the Commons. Now when you see in-game, you just go from place to place, but here you see everything. The Diamond Quarter is the closest to the surface which houses all the nobles, deshyrs, the Assembly Hall, Palace, and Shaperate. There were tons of houses and it took a walk to see everything up here. The Commons was 4 times larger than in game. We only browsed through one part of the market place. I couldn't wait to see everything. Orzammar was built like stairs to accommodate all the dwarves living here and there was a lot of dwarves. We didn't see many of them when we came but, now that it was morning, there were packed down there in the Commons.

Alfred barked behind me and there was Leto with another male dwarf. He was a bit older looking with mustache braids.

"Are you ready?"

"To cook? Of course. Time to show you my skills!"

* * *

**I'm a foodie, I'll admit that. I go to work and come home to cook :3 I got 6 huge books of recipes.**

**Shout out to LilthiaRW, Fell Metal, and Older than Time for following/favoriting this story! Also EG GOT THE HUNDREDTH REVIEW!**

**Minshe:** _Yes this is going to be going on into inquistition :3 Though for the rest...well you gotta keep reading to see_ right?  
**EG: **_It's ok, I get the same thing even though I'm old xD I love the random facts! Oh and you got the hundredth review!  
_**ZA:** _Man all of those just roll of the tongue don't_ they? _And love that picture, it was so cute!_  
**Wadoo: **_LOL your reviews remind how my husband likes to mismatch movies and anime all_ together.  
**Biorr the Old: **_That story is what inspired me to do the SI in the first place :3  
_**KrystylSky: **_I really like Sten. He's just so logical. Out of all the DAO people, he's the one more reminiscent of my husband. Don't worry, Eren does gets his happily ever after_ :3  
**ROYGBIV: **_Thank you and I would love to read it but unfortunately you did review as a guest. Review signed in and I'll take a look._

**Thank you guest, efdfd, shinedown, LilthiaRW for your reviews!**

**Please Review.**


	22. In the Kitchen!

**Just a slight note on the chapter. There's a personal story of mine. Things have been changed and names have been omitted. Not only that it's not the whole truth, but mostly the truth. Like they say, write what you know.**

* * *

Day 2 Continued

Going down the stairs to go into the Commons was always easier than going up. I was still in awe at the architecture of Orzammar. I missed the sky though. I followed Leto and the Shaper to the food market. Oh My Gosh! There was so much food! They actually had fish down here! A lot of nug pieces, fruit from the surface and various cheeses. I had to make sure that Alistair doesn't find this place or else he'll get fat off cheese.

"I have heard about your techniques about the bread. We have already sent your recipes out to the taverns. Is there anything that catches your interests?" The shaper said.

"There is a lot that caught my interest. Isn't there a kitchen where most of the servants cook?" I asked, picking through common nugs and various meat pieces.

"There are 5 taverns here in the Common section. I would suggest Tapster's if you want to experiment. They have the largest kitchen ."

"Then let's go. I have to see how you guys cook before I do anything."

There more dwarves than yesterday out in the Commons. I kept feeling eyes on me. Every single time I looked somewhere, there were dwarves that looked away in hushed tones. I guessed in a small enclosed community, word travels fast. As we neared Tapster's there were a few dwarves with armor coming through a rotted wood gate. They looked haggard with tattoos on their faces. I made sure not to make eye contact with them. These were casteless dwarves. They would attack you if you even looked at them wrong. I was wearing regular clothes with no weapons, so of course I'll be slightly afraid.

Luckily they passed us without incident, but I noticed Leto's face when they passed us. It was a sneer.

"Those casteless should say in Dust Town." Leto said. It was an awkward moment. I don't think these guys know that Bhelen has a casteless wife basically. We go into Tapster's and the smell, God the smell! I don't these guys clean up that often. We went through to the back and damn, it might have been medieval, but these guys know how to use lava for everything. Unfortunately it made the room really hot. I was only in there for a minute and I already started to sweat.

"And who is she?" I heard a gruff voice. There was this man who I could tell was the boss. He had some dreads up in a ponytail and a 5 o'clock shadow.

"She is the Grey Warden's companion, Nia. She was the one who spread the new recipe for ale bread." Leto introduced me. I bowed in respect. He just sized me up and scoffed.

"Is that so? Then why is she in my kitchen?"

"I'm here to share my wisdom in the kitchen. I've been-"

"Look I don't care if you were the personal chef of the surface king, I'm the boss here."

"Does the boss have a name?"

"Terol, now get out." I scowled. I have experienced haughty chefs in my life, but this dude is kicking me out before I can even do anything! Nope, been pushed around all my life. Besides, there was no way he could fire me since I wasn't working for him. I just walked past him and looked around the kitchen. Even though they had such a big place, they barely had any food out. I checked what they did have on hand. Some hard bread, ground meat, cheese, and tomatoes. I smirked to myself. I haven't had a burger in ages!

"Hey! I said get out!"

"Not until I at least show you something. Just one thing, and I'll get out." Torel glared at me and crossed his arms.

"It better be worth it surfacer."

I got the ground meat, lightly salted it, toss it with some more herbs and spices. I got some butter and lightly slathered the stove they had. It was nice and warm. I made my patties thin to make sure they cooked all the way through. Boom! They sizzled deliciously. I started cutting the bread, lightly buttered it and started to toast it right next to the meat. I cut some tomatoes and flipped the meat. I got the bread and started to lay it down. Oh man the smell was so good! After making sure that the meat was cooked down the center, I took out the patties and laid them out on the bread.

"Hey do you have a cheese block?" A dwarf handed me one. I did a taste check first. It was mild, not much of a kick to it. This will do. I made sure to wipe down my knife and cut a few slices to put on the hot patties. I took the tomatoes and put them on top. I looked around just to make sure they didn't have any sort of vegetable to put on there. Then I saw a small container of moss. They wouldn't have kept this around if it wasn't edible. I took a piece of it. It had a nice earthy taste with a beautiful crunch. This will do nicely.

I started to put the moss on top of the cheese so that it would stay. I added the top bread and voila! A makeshift burger! I gave Terol one and some of the workers also started to get the few that I made. He looked at it up and down, gave it a good whiff, and took a bite. I did as well. Oh God it was heavenly! The dwarves that were tasting it gave their approval. Terol was still munching on it. After he swallowed that first bite, he put it down and gave me a once over.

"What else you got surfacer?" I just smirked. Well, the break was done. Time to roll up my sleeves and get down and dirty.

* * *

I got back to the GW house exhausted. Oh man, all I want to do now is sleep but what a day! I was able to introduce them to the 5 major sauces, showed them the base gravy's using bones, showed them the wonders of offal foods, and talked them down through some more foods. The patrons were gobbling up the hamburgers like crazy! We actually ran out of moss and had to bring in some surface lettuce. I had to introduce them to pizza of course! The deep fry also took off like a rocket. They didn't have oil, but they did have lard. I had to tell them to use it sparingly though.

I also introduced them to tortillas and tostadas. Nachos were soon well on their way, but besides the junk food, I also talked them through rice, beans, soup bases, marinating, using eggs to their full potential.

Torel had made sure to pay me for everything that I showed him and the shaper, who is named Rydal, was writing down recipes like a maniac. Leto had assured me that they will publish it once they get enough recipes. I never knew that one day I would be one of those people to have recipe books, but hey it got me money.

Though that was just for regular cooking. I planned to tackle desserts as well. I still owe Sten cookies. Unfortunately, no one has ever heard of chocolate. I think that it didn't exist in this universe, so sad. They do have vanilla fortunately, so that's something I could totally use.

The good thing is that they have a low pool of fish. It's almost a delicacy here since underground fish isn't as good as surface fish. It's the one thing I'm not good at, seafood. Next day I have it set to show them potatoes and beef, what you can do with them!

* * *

Ok so I was planning on sleeping, when I heard a knock on my door.

"You can come in." Eren opened the door and I yawned.

"Where were you all day?"

"In the kitchens. I was showing everyone my expertise in the culinary food. So, you got a plan or something?" Eren sighed and sat on the chair opposite me. Alfred had laid his head in my lap. He got scratches behind his ears.

"We had a small experience in dwarven politics. We sat through an Assembly meeting. It was a nightmare. It's only going to get worse. We also met up with Bhelen's second. They gave us these documents to give to different houses to make them think that Harrowmont was cheating them. A trip to the Shaperate showed us that one of them was forged. Derek told me just to go along with it. We have to earn Bhelen's trust. We spent all day running to and fro looking for the people on the documents. Unfortunately the Dace house is in the Deep Roads right now." Eren said, rubbing his face in exhaustion.

"You asking me to join you?" Eren yawned.

"We're going to have to brave them sooner or later. Derek said it's better if half of us remain, and the other half go into the deep roads. We can't have all the Grey Wardens dying. Talen and I already agreed to going. Sten and Morrigan will be joining as well. What do you say? You want to knock some darkspawn heads with me?"

"Heh, sure. When are we leaving?"

"Late tomorrow. We have to stock on supplies. From the map that Derek showed me, it's going to take about 3 days to even reach them. Adding to the fact that it is the Deep Roads, we'll be encountering a lot of darkspawn. Alistair did tell me they are supposed to be safer during a blight. We'll have that to our advantage. Are you going to be needing anything for this trip?"

"Well my armor is pretty dented and my knives need sharpening. I actually have enough money to do that now, so I'll do it early tomorrow!"

"Good." Eren said, rubbing the back of his neck and looking down at the ground. He hasn't said anything and he seemed a bit nervous about something. "Alfred, can you go get _that_?" He barked and went out the door. I just looked at him with raised eyebrows. I was about to ask what that was, when Alfred came in with the bear I saw earlier in the market. He gave it to Eren and he gave it to me. "It's for you. I heard from Leliana that you wanted it."

I giggled and hugged the teddy bear. I rubbed my face all over it and took a good whiff. It kinda smelled like dirt and dust, but then there was that teddy bear fragrance that they all had. It was a good reminder of home.

"Why did you get me this?" Eren had that blush on his face again, and I dropped the smile. "Eren if you got me this because you wanted something from me-"

"No, it isn't like that Nia. I wanted to tell you something for a very long time...I'm in love with you. I know what you're going to say so close your mouth. I still have…feelings for you, even though I know you will never return them. I came here so we can finally leave this in the past. All I ask is that you tell me of your husband."

"My husband? Why do you want to know about him?"

"I want to know why you cannot chose me. So please, tell me about him. How did you fall in love with him?"

"Well, long story short-"

"No. Don't do that. Tell me everything." I sighed.

"Geez just poke and prod me why don't you? Fine, if that's what you want. Masochist. I went to school for cooking and found my husband there. I actually didn't want him in the first place. I just got out of a bad relationship when I met him, so I didn't want anything to do with men. All I wanted was fun. So we were friends for a good while. Then things started to…well life just started to really mess with me. I had a…friend. He was a good friend for a while. Then something that happened to his family that changed him. He started to…well bottom line, he started to abuse me. Not physically, don't look at me like that.

No, he started to tear down my mind and my heart. He used to say the most hurtful things to me. Things that I put trust in him. He used my secrets against me. He threw the care that I had for him in my face. There were many times when he would threaten me with his death. It was getting to the point where they only place I felt safe was at school. That's when my husband started to notice how I changed. In class, I was myself. As soon as I left, I clammed up. I was a prisoner.

I couldn't go anywhere without my …friend saying something to me. I didn't have any friends anymore because he shoved them away from me. He became obsessed with me. It just got worse and worse…then he started to…grab me. His hand never physically hurt me, but he would make me stay with him with force. I started to get bruises.

My family told me enough was enough. So I confronted him. My husband, who I just started to get feelings for, stood by me when I confronted that friend. He turned into a demon, figuratively speaking. He started to hurt himself and…yell at me. I collapsed and my husband had to carry me out there. He nearly assaulted him to get to me, but his own family held him back.

The nightmare was over. That's when I started to be with my husband. To tell you the truth, it was more like a thank you than me being really in love with him."

"You had chosen him because what he did for you, and not because you felt for him?" Eren asked. I nodded and hugged the bear close to me.

"Yeah. I wasn't in love with him, but then I noticed everything he started to do for me. I was in a bad place after that confrontation, but he held me with patience. He was understanding and loving. Then with time, I just naturally fell for him. That's when I noticed that he complimented me in personality, in likes, in dislikes. It just felt natural to be by his side." I said, petting Alfred. He was slightly snoring right next to me.

"I'm sorry…I shouldn't have yelled at you about that armor." Eren said.

"Ah don't worry about it. Past trauma will probably never go away. I already said sorry and forgave you." We had a comfortable silence with me scribbling away.

"So you will never fall for me, will you?"

"No. My heart is already full of someone else."

"If I had met you sooner-"

"It still wouldn't have happened."

"What? Why not?"

"Because you're not my type and our personalities clash too much. Even if I did view you in that light, our personalities would eventually degrade us to a bad relationship. We would have passion yes, but it would be self-harming in the long run."

"Well that's good to know." I punched him in the arm.

"Well, now that I've told you this, you can go ahead and start your romance with Morrigan."

"What!? Why would you even assume-"

"Oh come on. Everyone can see that she follows you around like a little puppy. And don't even get me started when we found you two in the wagon all disheveled and stuff." Eren snorted.

"Trust me, we are only using each other." I just gave him a knowing look and smirk. He flicked my forehead and I laughed.

"I'll tell you this one thing though. Morrigan is probably using you for something. I'm not sure what it is," Yeah right, I totally know, "just make sure you don't get yourself hurt ok? Also be careful in impregnating her, I'm way too young to be an aunt."

"Young my ass!" I laughed and he smirked.

"So, how are you dealing with…your family?" He gave me this whole Gendo pose. I frowned. He must be still hurting after all this time.

"Sometimes it's hard to sleep at night. I still have the image of my family burned into my eyes, but Oren is still alive. Fergus might also be out there…I still haven't thanked you for helping us for that night. If it wasn't for you, I wouldn't have been here. Thank you." I felt my face flush out of embarrassment.

"Oh come on, what is this, sappy night? Don't worry about it Eren. I would do it all over again in a heartbeat."

"Hmph. Well, I think that was enough emotion sharing for one night. Get some sleep, we have a big day tomorrow." Eren said. Alfred groaned but followed him out. I yawned again. Alright, I got everything written down. Night!

Day 3

I was pretty tired when I woke up. I went to the baths again and just relaxed, until I noticed I wasn't alone.

"I did not think that anyone else would be awake at this time." I looked out to the next boulder and there was Morrigan.

"Yo Morrigan. Is it that early? Or is it late?"

"Tis a bit later than usual. I would think that you have already made your way back into the Common's kitchen."

"Nah. I was hoping to but Eren asked me to go with him in the Deep Roads. It's going to be a long trip. Which kinda sucks because today was going to be about potatoes. Although I could ask them to build a few things while I'm gone…" A griddle and ice cream maker were a few things that would blow their mind!

"You have not traversed the fade for a very long time. Could it be that your connection is weakening?" Morrigan asked. I was kinda quiet. She had a point. When was the last time I went into the fade?

"Huh. Now that you mention it, I don't even remember when I last went into the fade." I held myself in the thinking pose. Why? I would usually go in there almost every 3 days.

"I have a hypothesis about it. As we were journeying through the gates of Orzammar, you let out a substantial amount of spirit energy when you touched Talen prior to entering the gates. Now that you are half spirit, I have a belief that you are able to harness this energy on this plane. Now consider this; if you were to use your half spirit self to attack those near your person, you would use energy just like Mages use mana. In essence, you also recover it but at a slower rate than us. If my hypothesis is correct, when you sleep after using this energy, you merely sleep to regain as much energy as you can back from the fade."

"So you're thinking that I'm still in the fade, but I'm sleeping over there to get back what I lost? Isn't that kinda dangerous? What if a demon walks by and wanted to possess me?"

"No, merely a piece of yourself resides in the fade, not the whole. Demons will not be able to possess you if you do not give them permission. If this is to be true, I might be able to locate you the next time you sleep."

"Oh good! I wouldn't want to be alone in the fade while that's happening. So, if I can take the energy out of the fade, do you think I can use it as an attack? Because that would be great."

"I cannot say. We have not experimented enough to warrant an answer."

"Yeah, good point. Well, I'm getting pruny. I'm getting out. I think we'll figure out this whole thing with me eventually. After all, you just want to know about the power right?" Morrigan gave me a slow smirk. So I got out of the bath and changed into my usual black outfit. I grabbed my gear and started to head out when Leto came with me.

"So will we be learning anymore today? You said that today was potato day." Aww, he looked so spirited!

"Sorry Leto. I'm going to have to give you a rain check on that. I'm going to be going out into the Deep Roads later today. Oh! I do have some homework for you though!" I took out some parchments with a rough diagram of a griddle and ice cream maker. The griddle was only one sided and the ice cream maker was just a wooden bucket and metal bucket inside with a crank. "So I'm going to need these to make a few more items. After potato day is going to be breakfast day, then dessert day. I need you to take these to the smiths and explain everything I just did. You think you can do that Leto?"

"Of course I can my lady! You will have your equipment ready once you come back, on my Ancestor's honor!" Leto said. I gave him a quick handshake and started to go over to the smith's. They would have my equipment ready in an hour and I didn't have to pay! Tapster's has been telling everyone who made the new recipes. The smith really enjoyed pizza I hear.

So now I have a half hour to just waste. I wonder what I should do?

"Oh I didn't expect you to be around here." Alistair said, with, of course, cheese in his arms.

"I stopped by the smiths so they can repair my armor and sharpen my daggers. I see you're treating yourself to the local cheeses." Alistair laughed awkwardly. "Hey it's what you like right? I'm not much a fan of cheese."

"Why is that? Cheese is wonderful and delicious."

"Unless it's very mild, I tend not to eat it. You and my husband would have been really good friends. He also loved cheese. Hmm…macaroni and cheese…"

"I'm sorry?"

"Oh no, I'm just wondering outloud. You've heard that I'm sharing all my recipes with the kitchens here right? You actually reminded me of another dish that's actually really good, and that has cheese in it too."

"How do you know all of this anyway? All I thought is that you make good soup."

"Before I came here I was a professional cook. I went to school for it. 2 years. Worked for 3."

"Wow. All of this in five years?"

"Well I also looked up recipes on my own personal time. I always liked baking. My husband was more on the cooking side. I was always afraid of the sizzling of the food. That the grease would come back on me, which it has. Most of my burns came from the oven though. It's kinda hard to tell now that I have all these callouses on my hands. Did you know I would get cut almost every day in my job?"

"No! I can't believe that, you wield your daggers expertly."

"I know right? But somehow, someway, I always managed to hurt myself. I wasn't clumsy either. When you really get down to the wire and start working, you just forget what's hurting. I have good focus."

"Oh are you, you're Nia right?" A passing guard said.

"Yep, that's me."

"I must say your hamburger idea is absolutely delicious!" He shook my hand and started his rounds again. I laughed.

"Well, that was random. Anyway, my stuff should probably be done by now."

"Eren told me that he would be taking you to the Deep Roads. You have to be careful. Don't get darkspawn blood on your cuts. I don't want the taint taking you." Alistair said, seriously. I just did a fist bump to chest.

"Don't worry so much Alistair. I'll be fine. Just make sure to hold down the fort while we're gone." I said good bye as he went up to the Diamond Quarter and I went to the smith's. The armor was good as new, repaired. My blades were also finally up to par. I thanked them and paid slightly as well. They didn't want to accept it, but business is business.

Time to decapitate some darkspawn!

* * *

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	23. Aeducan Thaig

Day 3 Continued

We finally got all of our supplies. I rechecked the food three more times to make sure we have enough. Our whole group was 5 people and a dog. Since Talen came with us I had to check since he's such a glutton though he would never personally admit it.

"Are you checking the food again? We have enough." Talen said.

"Keep telling yourself that. You're the one who made me broke because you eat the most." I said, poking his chest. It shocked him slightly but I didn't feel it.

"I'm still growing." He said, rubbing the place where I poked him. I shrugged. He did have a good point.

"Growing where exactly? We're the exact height." He turned red and just huffed away.

"Is everyone ready? I have the pass from Lady Dace to go into the Deep Roads." Eren said. Talen and I started to follow him out of the Diamond Quarter.

"Un momento mi amigo. I would like to join you on your journey." Zevran said, coming right next to me.

"You sure about that? If you get cut and get darkspawn blood on you, there's a good chance that you'll be tainted." Talen said, crossing his arms.

"Then I will make sure that you will keep me company in my dying days." Zevran said, winking at him. Talen visibly shivered and used me as cover.

"It's fine if you want to come along Zevran, just mind yourself while we're on our way. That means no sex." Eren said. Talen paled and I laughed. Alfred barked.

"Ah must you be so unkind?" Zevran said. So out of the Diamond Quarter and through the Commons. Sten and Morrigan were already waiting for us.

"Let's go." Eren said.

Time go to on an adventure!

* * *

The Deep Roads were beautiful. It reminded me of the old caves with writing on them that were scattered throughout the USA. To think that these were standing for hundreds of years. As such we followed the map that Lady Dace gave us so we didn't get lost. So far we didn't come across anything. Most of the light came from the lava that was right next to us. What's with dwarves and lava anyway?

Good thing dwarves made good ventilation or else we'd be cooking. The road was pretty cracked and most of the sign posts were lying on the ground. Just another reminder of what they had lost.

"Will you stop gawking? I swear that was the 10th time you tripped because you weren't paying attention." Talen said.

"Hey unlike you, I actually appreciate all of this. I don't even know when I'm going to be in Orzammar after we get our troops. I might as well burn everything in my memory." Then I tripped again and shoved against Sten. "Sorry Sten."

"There's the marker. Come, this way." Eren said. We met a fork in the road and went to the right.

"Still it is a wonder than their architecture would last so long." Zevran said.

"Back where I'm at, there are pyramids that have stood for thousands of years. We still don't know what really inside them either. I've always appreciated all of this." I said.

"In Par Vollen we always make sure that our buildings can withstand much force, in case our enemies decided to invade." Sten said.

"Hmm, I think that someone has to be extremely stupid and crazy to try to invade you guys Sten."

"I would agree as well. They would be cut down before they made even a slight incursion into our lands."

"I don't doubt that. That reminds me of these people called Spartans. They had a culture similar to yours and there was this one time where 7,000 men stopped an army of one hundred thousand men for 3 days to protect their homeland. Then they got betrayed and 300 Spartans, with a few others, stayed. They all died but the battle is still remembered even after 2000 years." I explained.

"Then they are all true warriors." Sten said.

"How do you know all this stuff? Were you a scholar and a cook?" Talen asked. I shook my head.

"No. I was just a cook but I liked learning, so I always looked up useless information."

"Why must you call it useless?" Morrigan asked.

"Because unless you were looking up info for something that you were working on, nobody cared. That's why it was considered useless whenever I looked this stuff up. Really, I just liked reading about all this. It was interesting."

"It is better that you are well informed than others. A mind is a terrible thing to waste." Sten said.

"Totally agree with you there." Eren and Talen stopped. Alfred started to growl. I took out my daggers along with Zevran. We made a circle with all of our backs facing each other. When they say that even shadows horde darkspawn, they mean it. In the tunnels darkspawn have the advantage of coming down from everywhere. Sten, Alfred, and Eren made sure that the horde focused on them. Morrigan and Talen in the back with Zevran and I cutting down all the darkspawn that came through the line. Zevran always tried for the weak points in their armor, cutting where it would bleed the most. I just kept punching and duking it out with them. Darkspawn armor was always flimsy. One punch was all it took to crack it.

Finally we defeated the horde. Talen checked for injuries but all of us were fine, besides a few bruises. I wiped my blades, trying to get as much blood off. Darkspawn blood has a weird ability to make our equipment rust easier.

"Remember to tell me when you get a cut Sten. I know you hate being 'coddled' but we can't make any mistakes in here. If you get tainted, there is nothing we can do for you, got it?" Talen said. It was actually kinda funny seeing Talen berate Sten. His head barely reached Sten's chest.

"You will be the first to know." Sten agreed.

"And you mi niña hermosa?" Zevran asked.

"I'm fine. Hey Zevran I was wondering if you could teach me some of your techniques."

"You want to become an assassin now? Should I have a dagger under my pillow?" Eren said.

"Ha, ha. Why would you have a dagger if there's no chance for me to join you in bed?" Talen laughed and Morrigan chuckled.

"If you wish to learn, then I will teach you. But only because your beauty convinced me." Zevran said, winking at me and giving me that sultry smirk. I just shoved him playfully.

After that horde encountering us, we had nothing else coming in our path besides the stray deepstalkers. Man were those creepy. They had no face, except this worm like teeth mouth-hole thing. Like small albino dinosaurs. Ugh, I'm going to have nightmares about that later on.

* * *

So finally we decided to set up camp. We didn't bring our normal tent flaps since it's pretty warm. Everyone just had their own bed roll. It's gonna be hard to sleep with all this light though.

"So what is it you wish to learn mi niña?" Zevran asked.

"Well I'm good at punching the faces off darkspawn, but I noticed that you know where to stab to make sure they bleed. I want to know as well." I asked, making a small soup for our group. Talen was put on a ration to make sure we don't starve during this trip.

"Then as soon as you are finished preparing our dinner, I will teach you."

"Thanks Zevran."

"Hey just one bowl?"

"You shut up you black hole of a stomach!"

So after arguing with Talen on his ration, Zevran and I decided to walk just a bit off ways to make sure that no one could overhear.

"Why don't you want anyone to eavesdrop anyway? The crows are probably going to kill you anyway."

"True, but I would still like a little bit of secrecy." I just rolled my eyes.

"Now there are many places on the body to aim when dealing with flesh and blood. If I may?"

"If you fondle me, I'll punch you down there with my dagger again."

"Do not worry, I will only imagine your flesh on my own. There are many vulnerable places on the body where you can cut to ensure death. The most unprotected spot is of course the throat. Going down is the lungs, to stop breathing. The stomach and kidneys. A good spot that most seem to overlook, the spine. There is also one in the inner thigh-"

"Don't even go there Zevran." He chuckled.

"These are the spots that are most debilitating for your enemy. Most that we fight are usually wearing some form of protection, but with all armors, they can be penetrated. You have the upper hand with your knuckles. You can bend their armor and stab them in the right spots. Now let me show you the forms to do this quickly."

Zevran and I went through some stances. He showed me with his daggers how to get right in the opponent and stab at the opportune moment. From what I could gather, disorient the enemy first, and then go for the kill. Do it quickly, cleanly and with no hesitation. Zevran showed me his case of poisons that he carried around. I told him I wouldn't trust myself with those but they would work out in a pinch.

"And now you are a fledgling assassin." Zevran said after everything was all said and done.

"I'm not going to be killing people for money Zevran."

"Ah but isn't that what we are doing now?" Zevran said.

"I'm not going to think about that too deeply." He chuckled and we started making our way toward the group. Finally sleepy time!

Day 4

I was finally in the fade after who knows how long. Unlike the other times where I'm near where I'm sleeping, this time I was on one of the islands of the fade.

"Hey, I haven't seen you in a while." Talen said.

"Yeah it's been weird. I think when we had that one shock between us, it kinda did something. Morrigan can explain it better."

"What she means is that she has also a pool, but it is not mana. It is energy. She expended that energy by focusing it on you. Mana and her energy react opposing each other, and yet her connection to the fade allows you to heal her with almost no mana. This energy is your human part. Your spirit augments this power. If used correctly, it could do more." Morrigan said, strolling in near us. Talen looked away and scowled. Whatever happened between them, he doesn't seem to like her much anymore.

"So how do I control this? Last time I got angry at Talen but you said that our energies oppose each other so it might have been able to come out easier like that."

"Tis a matter of knowing where the energy comes from. Come, sit and meditate."

"Yes Master Morrigan." I said sarcastically and she just smirked at me. So I sat down, closed my eyes, and did the lotus stance.

"For us mages, we feel the power at our fingertips, in our very being. This power is a part of our very soul. You must seek where your power comes from." Morrigan said. I don't think I had to clear my mind. It was more like I had to find where this is coming from. I sorta recognized it how it felt. It was like lightning, a shock. Like a battery.

That's when I felt it when it punched me in the gut, literally. I let out a grunt of pain when my stomach felt like it had something inside it. I had crunched over the ground in pain. It was unbearable. I opened my eyes and it had that looking through the scope effect. I saw Morrigan and Talen's worried faces. Everything seemed bright.

"Hey! You're actually doing it! You're glowing!"

Then I had to throw up. Can you throw up in the fade? This is my second time. The…well what came out was a glowing liquid that splattered all over the ground. It tasted like smog and metal. Totally disgusting. I felt weak and I fell. That's when I woke up extremely sick to my stomach. Eren was on duty and saw me wake. I groaned with pain. I felt like heaving and my stomach felt like I had something stabbed into it.

"Nia? Are you feeling alright?"

Then I threw up again near the lava. I hated throwing up but my stomach felt extremely bloated for some odd reason.

"Oh God, that sucked bad." Eren just rubbed my back and offered me some water. I took some and spat out the remnants of dinner.

"What happened? Did you get sick from your food? If you were, then it's odd since you're so adamant on cooking everything thoroughly."

"No…I just did an experiment with Morrigan in the fade. It didn't really turn out that good. Ugh." I burped up some foil gases before my stomach finally calmed down. I explained to Eren what Morrigan tried to tell me. I was able to feel the energy for a good moment, but it was too much too soon.

"It's going to take a long time before I'm able to control it. I still can't even touch Morrigan, Talen, or Wynne without shocking them and myself. Hah, I just got to keep working on it."

"It's so odd that you have this power. I have never heard anything of it."

"Well, where I come from there's an idea that's similar to it. The body has a natural energy which many can't control, but those that can, can do some extraordinary things. It's called Chakra, Ki, Chi, life energy. I'm beginning to think that what I can control is this, but I have no idea how to. My husband has more experience dealing with this. I used to read stories about this, but never in my wildest dreams that I would be able to even control something."

"Weirder things have happened to us." Eren said. I agreed with him.

"Should we wake up the rest?"

"No, I can tell that we still have a few hours. Rest. I'll wake Talen to take his shift." I nodded and went to my bedroll. Alfred came over to me and laid down next to me. Sleepy time.

Day 4 continued.

We just continued to travel. So far, no darkspawn. All we had encountered are deepstalkers. From much insisting from Sten not to let it go to waste, we saved some of their meat. I cooked it as a small lunch and it tasted very gamy. But hey, food is food.

"So how are we looking at distance Eren?" I asked.

"Good so far. I've already seen some similar markings from the map. We should be halfway to where the head of House Dace is. We still need to be on guard. The roads might be a bit safer, but that doesn't mean darkspawn won't come at us." Eren said. I frowned. I was so bored. So I started to hum slightly. Morrigan kept giving me glances. I'm not sure if she was interested in what happened, or felt guilty of what happened. After all, it was her decision to do that whole meditating fiasco.

"Why is it that your tunes sound so sad mi niña?" Zevran asked.

"Eh, I don't like happy songs really. Happiness is fleeting anyway. I like sad songs because they remind us that life isn't sunshine and rainbows. Oh! I nearly forgot! I brought my ocarina!"

"You shouldn't play it. What if you alert enemies, hm?" Talen said. Grr, he had a point.

"I'm so bored!"

Day 5

We were in the Aeducan Thaig. I recognized some of the caves and everything. That meant there were going to be tons of darkspawn in our future. Eren and Talen seemed to be already picking up on them. The way ahead was blocked as usual. There was that cave in right in front of the road.

"Looks like we must venture out, no?" Zevran said. So we moved to the side passage and found darkspawn. I finally put the tactics that Zevran had me practice to good use. It wasn't too easy but I got a rhythm going. I successfully took down about 3 darkspawn by getting at their kidneys! I had to stab them a few more times until I killed them. It's a learning process. The emissary was a bit tougher to kill since we didn't have Alistair's talents helping us out. Sten was able to make easy work once their mana was low. One mighty swing later and we had half an emissary.

"That's not the last of them. There are more down this way." Talen said. We continued on. Yep, this is the place. I recognized those pillars.

"So this is the Aeducan Thaig huh?" I mumbled to myself. It was a lot darker than I thought. It was like those caves in Oblivion. There were a few places with natural light, like lava, but it was dark throughout. We did find a few footsteps that didn't belong to us. Alfred sniffed at the ground and barked.

"We are not far." Sten said. So we kept moving. Then the pillars started to crumble slightly, more darkspawn came from the ground. We did our normal tactics, until an emissary caught us off guard by summoning a blizzard. By sheer luck I was out of range of being frozen. Unfortunately all of our melee fighters weren't. 7 darkspawn against two rouges and two mages? This was going to be tough. I made sure to keep the darkspawn on me.

"Hey ugly! Come get me!" They all rushed me. I hit as many as I could. Zevran tried to keep at their backs, getting at the openings I was making.

"Nia, Zevran, out of the way!" Talen shouted. I did my roll out of the way. Good thing too since both Morrigan and Talen sent fireballs at the group. By this time Eren and Sten finally defrosted and going for the emissary. I heard a small hiss near my ear and I barely moved out of the way of a backstab. Then a genlock launched itself on my back. I was able to stop its dagger finding my throat and threw him off. He was quickly killed by one of Morrigan's frost spells.

"Are you alright mi niña?" Zevran asked.

"Woo, yeah, I'm alright." I said. That was a difficult fight. It made me wish that Alistair was here since he could deal with mages so damn easily.

"We must step carefully. They are using tunnels for ambushes. There will be more." Sten explained.

"Yeah, we know that Sten. Let's just look for this Dace guy and get this over with." Talen said.

"If Alistair were here then these emissaries wouldn't be so hard to kill." I said, continuing further.

"Missing our stray Templar, are you?" Morrigan said.

"He's useful ok? Don't look at me like that."

"Your cheeks are becoming flushed." Sten said.

"Are you blushing mi niña? Perhaps you do care for the companionship of our wayward Templar."

"I'm not-! Let's just keep going ok?"

"There are more darkspawn ahead. I count 7, be on your guard." Eren said. We crept slowly into an area that was closed off. We were able to locate one darkspawn, but they would find us soon as well.

"Hey Zevran, you got a poison bomb in your case?" I asked.

"Ah, I see your tactical mind at work here. Here, throw it into their camp. The glass is designed to break easily." I tip toed over to the wall that separated us. The genlock that was right next to it noticed me and Morrigan started to fling her spells. That's when I did an over throw and the flask broke. There was a small fire that burst out and we had running Genlocks that were on fire coming toward us. Talen did another fireball. Those that fell were easily killed by Zevran and Alfred.

"There are only 3 more!" Eren shouted. We met yet another emissary, but that dude was still burning. Taking no more chances, Eren told Alfred to get him. He aimed true at the throat and found his mark. The other two Genlocks trying to protect him were easily cut down. Unfortunately this was a dead end.

"I hope this Thaig isn't too huge, otherwise we might not even run into the Dace house." Talen said, wiping his hands on his robes.

"Hey Zevran, keep your case handy, we might need to use it a lot more." I said.

"Of course mi niña." We went through a side passage but Eren and Talen were both sure that they were no more darkspawn near us. We did find a small bunch of deepstalkers though. Those were easily killed. Zevran even harvested their spit glands to take their poison. After a few acid burns, and more side passages, we found a door.

There were deepstalkers beyond it, but they weren't moving. I guess they were expecting us to continue forward so they could ambush us. Nope. A few shock bombs and some spells, and boom, dead. As we continued on we found the Dace group. We couldn't talk to them at the moment since more deepstalkers came. After the first wave, Eren tried to say something to him but the lord told him to shut it.

Finally the second wave of deepstalkers was finished. Eren started talking to him. That meant I finally had a small chance to get all of this written down.

"You carry that journal everywhere, no?" Zevran said, sitting right next to me on some steps. I saw Eren give the papers to Lord Dace. Yep there's the face of betrayal.

"Yep."

"Why do you write in it, if you don't mind me asking."

"To keep me sane. Think about it Zevran, I'm from another world. It's kinda easy to forget that, but this is all so crazy and impossible, I just need to remind myself that I have to keep my head. There's a chance I might never go back home, to never see my family again. Your country is still here. Mine isn't. Sometimes I try not to think about it. Writing makes me focused on something else besides my situation…if I actually start to think about all of it, I might just break." I said.

"I am sorry to hear that." Zevran said. He actually meant it too.

"No, it's fine. Sorry, I try not to be depressing. Let's talk about other things, nice things like cats or puppies. Or food, or a nice, hot, relaxing bath!"

"A bath would be very refreshing."

"Come. Eren has already relayed the information to the dwarf lord. We are to head back now." Sten said. Oh good, I'm getting tired of all of this dust and stone. Well, back to Orzammar!

* * *

**Finally got our first taste of the Deep Roads! :D Yay! 4 REVIEWS! :DD Things are starting to get done!**

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	24. Gathering Info

Day 7 Night time

After the whole 'getting the papers to Lord Dace,' we didn't stick around for too long in the Deep Roads. There was really no point on scavenging for treasure when we could easily get the taint or die. We hightailed it out of there, making our way back to Orzammar. Man, Lord Dace is a slave driver though. He made us jog back with minimal rest. Let's just say, I'm super freaking tired. Finally got my bath, got some yummy food in me, yeah time to rest.

Day 8

So considering that I was really tired last night, I wasn't able to explain what happened on the way back from the Aeducan Thaig. I was able to go into the fade again. Of course I was joined by both Morrigan and Talen.

"Are you ready to control your power again?"

"Oh God, you serious? Didn't you see what happened last time?" I face palmed. I didn't want to go through that again. I hate throwing up.

"You weren't even able to see yourself! You looked awesome! You glowed and had cracks of light coming out of your skin!" Talen said. Morrigan and I shared a look and then looked at him. He cleared his throat and his ears became red. "I-It just looked interesting, that's all."

"Yeah, glowing badass does sound nice, but I can't control all that power! It's like trying to light a match and accidentally torching a whole city."

"Then release it. Tis simple." Morrigan said.

"Release it on what exactly?"

"Talen of course."

"What?" We both went.

"This power comes out through your manipulation and its natural opposition of mana. Touch Talen and release your energy." I started to snicker while Talen grew red.

"She didn't mean it that way! Just…go on, see if this works." So I grabbed Talen's wrist. It was like holding onto a live wire. A surge of energy came forward and made both of us get blasted backward. We hit the floor and my whole arm went numb.

"Oh shit! I-I can't move my arm!" Nope, not even a little bit. My fingers wouldn't even twitch.

"Ok, maybe it's just the whole you zapping me, but I got an idea. You said that this spirit is protecting you all the time right? What if it saw mages as enemies?" Talen said, his arm glowing green from healing energies.

"But it said that it transferred me here because of the healing energies specifically. You really think that it doesn't like mages?"

"This spirit, although not having a corporal body, still has some control on your being. Perhaps it views us as dangerous, while letting us heal you quickly. All take and no give."

"So I'll never be able to touch another mage? Well that kinda sucks."

"I do not think tis that simple. It merely means that your spirit is protecting you the best it can by hurting the ones that can cause you most harm." Morrigan said. "If you were able to control your power, you might not have such a negative reaction toward mana."

Of course I woke up shortly after that by being kicked by Lord Dace's bodyguard. I was not a happy camper throughout the way back. I'm not much of a grump when someone wakes me up, but that was just rude.

I am very happy to be back.

"Oh my lady! I'm glad you're back. It seems that the trip went well as everyone came back safely." Leto said, bringing out my breakfast.

"Yep, so that was a stroke of good luck. Were the things that I requested made?" Mmm, eggs.

"Yes. They are here. When you are ready, we can head over to the kitchens."

"Awesome."

"Ooh, what's cooking?" Alistair said, sitting down next to me. Leto went off to get another plate. "So how goes the Deep Roads? Meet a lot of darkspawn? Oh! Did you get me a souvenir?"

"Ha. Ha. You're so funny."

"I try."

"So how did it go without us?"

"Derek has been spending all of his time with his sister. Even though she's carrying the Prince's child, he still wasn't able to get an audience. Oh, thank you Leto."

"Here, put some cheese on that, let it melt. If you want, get some bread, spread some butter, and make an egg cheese sandwich."

"You're going to make me fat. I can already feel my armor cinching a bit too tightly." I laughed and continued eating.

"What about Leliana and Wynne? I haven't seen them at all, and they're usually the first ones up."

"OH! Um, well, there was this dwarf girl, what was her name…? Dagna I think. She talked to Wynne and asked her if the circle would be willing to take her in for study. Wynne agreed, said it was good to have more hands to rebuild. She went off almost right after you to go to the circle. Don't worry, she did take Leliana with her."

"Oh good. I didn't want her traveling alone. You never know, you know?" Alistair laughed nervously. He wasn't nearly happy to eat as he normally was. "What's wrong Alistair?"

"Wha-What do you mean? Nothing is wrong, what makes you think…that?" His voice squeaked, his face turned flushed, and he was looking at the wall. Yep something definitely happened. I just gave him a look and he caved rather easily. "Well, nothing is wrong really, just…well…"

"Come on Alistair just say it."

"I…confessed to Leliana." I swallowed my drink hard and slightly coughed.

"You what?"

"I-"

"It's a figure of speech, never mind. How and when did this happen?" Alistair fiddled with his fingers. He looked like a boy that stole a cookie and was telling me.

"Well, throughout our travels I began to…notice Leliana. She was just this beacon of light in this world. I picked a rose in Lothering. I put it in between a blank book just for some odd reason, I don't know. I started to…care for Leliana. When she told me of her plans to travel with Wynne, I decided to give her the rose. I didn't plan it or anything, and then my mouth started to run, oh it was awful. I sounded like a lunatic just rambling. But…what does a girl mean when she said that she'll think about it?" Alistair said. Aww he looked just like a little puppy.

"Well this is a sudden confession. I mean, we've only been together for what, a little over a month or two? I mean Leliana is pretty to look at, but to suddenly have someone say 'I like you, would you consider me?' Is a pretty big deal when you're out saving the world."

"Oh I knew it! I should have-argh!"

"Hey, hey, it's not a bad thing. That means she's actually thinking about it. You said that they left right after we did right? That means they should be back pretty soon."

"But I made an utter fool of myself!"

"People tend to do that when they really like someone. It's not the end of the world. Come on, eat your breakfast before it gets cold."

"What should I do when she gets back? What should I say?"

"Ok calm down Alistair, you're making this a little too dramatic. The worst that can happen is that she'll say no. Then you can move on and look for someone else."

"Someone else? Need I remind you I'm going to have to travel with her for who knows how long! What if she makes fun of me and hurts my feelings?" I rolled my eyes.

"If she makes fun of you, I'll pinch her. How's that sound?"

"A girl after my own heart."

"More like a woman to spend a night being ravaged." Zevran said, walking right in. Alistair's good mood quickly crumpled.

"Hey Zevran. How'd you sleep?"

"Very well. No big stones digging into my back, no disturbing light in my eyes. We should be treated like this more often."

"Don't get used to it Zevran, you know we're going to travel again later on. We still need to go to Redcliffe and then try to find the Dalish Elves. Ah! Anyway, now that I'm done with breakfast, I'm going out."

"Out? You just got back." Alistair said.

"Well I promised that I'd be showing the kitchen the versatile starch that is the potato. I'm also going to get started on some breakfast and dessert food. I got my whole day planned out for me. No time to rest. Besides, all of this is going into a book and that means money!" I laughed maniacally which made Zevran chuckle and Alistair shake his head. "Tell Eren that I went out ok? Hey Leto let's get going!"

* * *

Woo, I'm tired. The potato, very versatile food. I also got to show them pancakes, waffles, omelets, and more breakfast items. I also showed them how to make the base for ice cream and was able to make a simple vanilla ice cream. I think I might have blown their minds.

Anyway, I got back pretty late. The other servants already told me everyone has gone to bed, ah yes the bed is starting to invite me as well, but I need to take a bath. This is a good stopping point.

Day 9

Oh man, it's been a long time since I was able to sleep in. I felt groggy actually. I got up just the same. Oh man, that sleep was awesome. I actually came in when the 4 GWs were at the table.

"Yo guys, Morning." I said taking a seat next to Talen.

"Morning Nia. Haven't seen you in a while. How go the kitchens?" Derek said, sipping at his soup.

"Awesome. I feel like I haven't been in my element for so long. So, what's the plan for today? I actually have the day free."

"Good, because we're going to storm the Carta base and kill everyone." Talen said, taking a piece of bread and soaking it in his soup.

"Not everyone, just everyone that attacks us. Which is almost everyone anyway." Derek guffawed.

"We still need to find their hide out. But no one is telling us anything." Eren said, stabbing his eggs with an unfriendly glare.

"Well what'd you expect from dusters like those? I used to run with them. They won't tell us nothing." Derek scoffed.

"Well this is a very optimistic meeting." Alistair said.

"So are all of us going to storm the place? Are Leliana and Wynne back yet?"

"They came late last night. Thanks Leto." Woah! Where did that first soup go to?

"Thanks Leto. How's the book coming along?" I said. Nug noodle soup, yummy.

"It's coming, my lady. You have given us much to write about." Leto said.

"Geez, when I come back to Orzammar, everyone is going to be fat." Derek laughed. That actually gave me an idea.

"Hey Leto, how much food do you think I'll be able to carry? Probably a lot right? In a pack?"

"From your strength alone, I'm guess you can carry enough to feed at least 20 or more, my lady."

"Good. I want you to pack me a lot of food. I'm going to need it. Make sure that bread, butter, and jerky are a part of it. Put some fruit in it as well, oh and some water skins please."

"Of course my lady." Leto said and went out to prepare.

"Why do you need so much food?" Alistair said.

"You guys don't know where they moved the base right?"

"I exhausted all the choices. All the tunnels I used to know where all destroyed. You thinking of a plan missy?" I gave them a small smirk.

"Yep. After all, the quickest way to a man, is through his stomach."

"What?" Talen said.

"It's a saying back home, but this time I'm not looking for a suitor." Eren laughed.

"I see what you're saying. You are going to feed them for information aren't you?"

"Yep."

"You really think that's going to work?" Alistair said.

"You got a better idea?"

"Uh-"

"I thought so. So I'll get you your information, but I am going to need help…" Then Leliana came in with a yawn.

"Perfect! Leliana and Talen will by my helpers."

"What?" Both of them said.

"Oh go ahead and eat Leliana, I got a plan scheming in my head." I snickered evilly.

"You are scary when you're evil." Alistair said.

"Did I miss something?" Leliana said.

"Just eat, she'll explain." Talen said, getting another roll of bread. So I did. Leliana hasn't been around the city for too long, and I asked for some help in making a few disguises for us. We were scheming and cackling so much that we got some strange stares from Sten. I also requested very loose robes. Then Talen had to go and say something of course.

"I am not wearing Chantry robes! Why do I have to be a woman too!?"

"Come on Talen! It's only going to be for a little bit I swear! Besides, 3 women are better than just two. Sten is going to come with us as our back up. They're just robes."

"Uh have you noticed that I don't have the necessary equipment to even-" Then I produce two small melons. Very good, slightly sour. He looked horrified.

"Talen, if you don't wear these robes, I'm going to disrobe you and force them on you."

"I don't know, I think he might like it." Leliana giggled right next to me. Talen's ears turned extremely red.

"Talen, I'm going to count to 3 and if I don't see these robes on you, I'll do it myself. 1…" He grabbed the robes and ran into my bathroom to change. Leliana and I just started rolling in laughter. We changed just as quickly and also donned head garb.

"See? Now we look like nuns. We can just say that we're doing this in the name of the Maker, rough up some dwarves, and finally get what we're looking for!" I said with a fist pump.

"Only one thing, where's Talen?" Leliana asked. I knocked on the bathroom door.

"Talen?"

"Go away."

"I'm respecting your privacy by knocking, but seeing as we got some work to do, I'm going to ignore you and come in anyway!" So I kicked the door and he was there holding onto the melons. Leliana started to laugh behind me and I snickered, but pushed it down.

"I-I-I can't do this!" He said, mention the melons.

"Alright, hold on." I came up to him and grabbed the melons. I put them in where they were supposed to be, cinched them a bit tighter so that they would stay together. I took the comb and started to do his hair. "What do you think Leliana? He doesn't look half bad."

"Hmm, one more thing." She went out and got a small glass container. She took out a brush and dipped it. She started to head toward Talen and he started to freak out again.

"No sodding way! You keep that away from me!"

"Too late." I grabbed his arms to keep him from struggling. Boom, lipstick. Crossdressing complete!

"Now he is perfect, or should I say she?"

"I hate both of you." Talen made a good girl. So we went out and the pack of food was right next to the door where Sten was. I also saw Zevran.

"Zevran? What are you doing here?" Zevran looked at Talen up and down.

"And who is this lovely underground flor?"

"Touch me and I'll torch you."

"You know, you're not going to be a respectable woman if you talk."

"Well excuse me if I'm not jumping for joy."

"I think he looks fine."

"So do I. If you are interested Talen, I can show you a secret technique-"

"I'll sooner cut off your jewels than touch another man."

"Such a shame."

"Hold the fort Zevran, we've got info to scrounge." So we went out. We got a couple of strange looks but we had to look the part. Sten did his best to be our silent guard as we walked to Dust Town. We got stopped by Burkel. Leliana chatted with him for a bit before we headed off past the gate into Dust Town. The path led down. There were a lot of houses built closely together. A few curious eyes here and there, but none that would dare come to us voluntarily.

"Are you sure this will work?" Sten asked.

"If it doesn't, we'll just shake one of the dwarves to tell us." I whispered back. "Besides, the reason we're wearing loose robes, is to carry our weapons. If they try to jump us, we can handle them."

"I hope you are right."

We finally came into a cul-de-sac of sorts. There was a big bonfire and a lot of loitering dwarves. There were a few with really bad caste tattoos, wearing armor and showing their weapons.

"Hello good dwarves of Dust Town! We are but humble sisters looking at your time of need! We have brought food and the Chant to help your souls travel to the Maker!" I said loudly. They started to talk amongst themselves before a few coming up to get food. Sten glared at any dwarf with weapons that dared to get near us. Leliana and I were the kind sisters, and Talen was giving out the water. Leliana kept saying parts of the Chant to make the part look good. I said a few things from some of the scriptures that I could remember.

"How odd that you all would come here to do it. Most surfacers keep to the Commons and the Diamond Quarter." A dwarf woman asked and got some bread, jerky, and a cup of water.

"I think that if most saw what was happening down here, they would change it." Talen snorted and I gave him an inconspicuous stomp on his foot.

"Don't flatter yourselves. You know why no one comes down here. That's because Jarvia got a stick up her ass about people coming down here."

"Oh and you know Jarvia?" Leliana asked nonchalant.

"Know her? I just to run with her. Name's Nadezda. Used to be her right hand woman, until Leske came and broke my kneecaps to prove a point. Got infected, and now I won't probably be able to work another day. Got kicked out and making a living by what I got."

"How would you find this Jarvia?" Sten asked and Nadezda took a took chunk off the bread.

"Mm, good stuff. Like I said, she got a stick up her ass. She's making her workers carry around a carved bone which can unlock a door to the hideout. The door is always changing, but the key remains the same. That counts for something right?" I gave her another piece of bread. "Last I heard, the house right next to the cliffs had a few thugs in there with it."

"Thank you Nadezda." We finally gave who we could some more food and dropped the pack discreetly in an alleyway.

"Let's go look for some trouble shall we?" I said.

"Good, I can finally take this damned thing off." Talen mumbled. We headed over to the house that Nadezda mentioned and, sure enough, found the thugs. We did the whole, throw your robes epically moment and beat down the information out of them. We got the key and with it found the hideout. Of course we couldn't go in all willy nilly yet. We found, we saw, we conquered, and we left.

"See that wasn't so hard. Oh, Talen you're still wearing the make up."

"Sod off!"

* * *

**I had way too much fun writing this chapter. Did I go there with Talen? Yes, yes I did. :3**

**KrystylSky: **_Oh don't think that it'll stop there :3 With so many years ahead of Nia, what she does here is bound to make a few_ changes.  
**A. zareth: **_After Flemeth told Nia that her very presence changes things, she tries not to rely on her memories of the game. There will be a few times where she remembers things but for the most party, she can't rely on it. The game won't change that's a constant, but in real life you can't expect everything. Oh and I already got through the Broodmother chapter...it's_ harrowing.  
**EG:** _I'm glad you're getting better_ :3  
**ZA: **_Of course I will! The story must go_ on!  
**efdfd, Wadoo, Guest, ROYGBIV I'm glad you're back! Thank you for the reviews!**

**Reviews lets the writer feel warm and fluffy inside their heart :3**


	25. Cleaning out the Carta Hideout

Day 9 Continued

We finally made our way to the Commons. Talen decided that he needed a drink after what we put him through and went to Tapster's. So it was just me, Sten, and Leliana making our way to the Diamond Quarter.

"It was a good plan." Sten said.

"Oh thank you Sten. I try." I chuckled.

"You are a trickster is what you are." Leliana said, giving me a playful shove. I gave her a toothy grin before remembering something.

"Hey Leliana, Alistair told me something…"

"Hm?"

"He confessed to you right?" She looked pensive and bit her lip.

"That is true."

"He actually came up to me asking me on my opinion on it. I was just wondering you know, if you're going to say yes to him."

"Why? Are you jealous?"

"Leliana, I'm married, so no I'm not jealous. It's just that Alistair is a really good guy, and I don't want him to get hurt."

"Oh I wouldn't hurt a single hair on his head. Truthfully I was thinking about it on the way back from the Circle with Wynne. He is a good man."

"But…?"

"But I do not feel that way towards him. It is a bit sudden yes? Although we have already spent some time together, I do not think that it is enough for a relationship. I understand that we go through dangerous situations but I will not rush into something if it's not meaningful." I nodded and agreed with her.

"No you're right. There's something back home that's a bit similar. Where people go through a lot of dangerous stunts and feel like they're falling in love because of that. It's caused the bridge effect, when fear turns into love. I like that you're thinking about this Leliana but you're going to have to tell him. It's not good to string guys along, trust me."

"You are right. Where is Sten?" Now that I noticed it, he wasn't following us anymore. How the hell did we lose a 7 foot giant, I didn't know.

"Huh? That's weird. You wanna look for him while I go and tell Eren the good news?"

"You might as well. We will need Sten in order for this mission to be successful."

"Oh yeah definitely. Alright, once you find him, go to Tapster's. Talen should still be there. Make sure he doesn't get besotted." I said, going through the doors into the Diamond Quarter. The stairs are easy enough to deal with. I finally recognized the GW base and head inside.

"You're back mi niña hermosa? How did you fare?" Zevran said, coming up behind me.

"You should be careful when you're doing that. You startle me and then I punch you. It'd be a bad day for both of us but we got in. All we need to do is regroup and storm their base." I said. "Is everyone here?"

"Yes. Wynne is bathing her magical bosom and the others are about." Zevran said.

"We're going to need to round up everyone. The sooner we can get this done, the sooner I can go back into the kitchen." Zevran laughed.

"You very much enjoy cooking, no?"

"Well cooking has its uses. Truthfully my husband was the one that cooked all the time. All I did was bake and make soup. I guess cooking brings me a bit closer to him. Eren! We found a way in!" I said, coming up to him in the hallway.

"You did? Good. Zevran, Nia, look for the others. We will meet in the dining hall."

"Yes Master Eren." I gave him a small salute and we went our separate ways. I saw Derek's room and decided to go in. Let's just say I'm going to need to wash my eyes out. I shut the door as quickly as I opened it.

"You could at least knocked!" Derek shouted from inside.

"Sorry! Um, we found a way in, so yeah. Just finish and um, meet in the dining hall!" I shook my head out and looked for Wynne or Morrigan. I found Wynne in the small library that we had here in the base. Her hair was still wet from bathing and she had it down for once.

"Hey Wynne. I found the entrance to the Carta hideout. Eren is calling for everyone to meet up in the dining hall."

"Oh thank you. I will be right there." I fidgeted for a bit and she noticed me.

"Is there something on your mind?"

"Um…no well I'm just wondering if you're ok. You just took a really long trip and got back recently. You sure you're up for this?" I asked. Wynne laughed.

"Oh child. I may be old, but I am not about to lie down and stay. Thank you for your concern though. How are you on your condition?" Wynne said, standing up and getting her staff. She put her hair up using her tie.

"Pretty good. Morrigan has been running experiments on me. So far I'm adverse to mana, but not because of just my energy. It seems that the spirit is still unconsciously protecting me from the ones who can do me most harm. I can also try to control it, but it's a hit or miss usually."

"And Morrigan is doing this out of her own free will?" She looked at me with a 'do you really trust her?'

"Yeah. I think she's doing it to see if it could benefit her. I wouldn't put that past her but don't worry. Talen is always there as a third party. I actually haven't seen you in the fade much."

"I try to keep to my own there. If Morrigan is truly helping you, then I must warn you to be cautious. We don't know what she's planning in the future." Oh I know what she planned to do. But I'm not a GW. That choice will have to be made by them.

"Yeah I know. Don't worry Wynne, I can look out for myself."

"That has yet to be believed." My face went into mock horror.

"Oh Wynne, you don't trust me? That's hurt my small little heart." She just gave me a wry smile. We finally went into the dining room. Everyone was there and Derek glared at me.

"Now that everyone is here, Derek will explain what we'll be expecting." Derek took a quick gulp of his ale.

"Alright dusters, the Carta is the hidden underbelly of Orzammar. You can call it a gang, but it's really a hidden army. Don't just expect dwarves. They hire mercenaries of all kinds. They will use traps, poisons, and anything they can get their hands on to kill you. They fight dirty so expect knees to the groin and ambushes. Unfortunately I wouldn't know the layout. They're always changing the tunnels to make sure that no one can easily infiltrate it. I won't lie, it's going to be tough but we're tougher. Eren, Alistair, Alfred, me and Sten should be right in the front. The Carta mostly rely on quick moves, they don't know what do when faced with a mountain. Morrigan and Wynne, we have a natural resistance to spells. Keep to fire and ice. We still burn just as easily. Zevran and Nia, this is your time to shine. I expect you to use those nice flashing sword moves to kill them. Everyone got that?" We all gave our agreements.

"Good. Time to keep some sodding ass."

"Um, there are some of the group that isn't here…" Alistair started.

"Talen went into Tapster's after being a woman for nearly an hour. Leliana and Sten should be with him as well. We'll pick them up and talk as we go. Oh! Before I forget, here Derek. This is the carved bone token that we're going to use. I know the door as well so I'll show you." I said, handing him the token. He grabbed my arm for a quick second.

"You keep your mouth shut on what you saw. That is my special position, you hear?"

"Oh God Derek, did you have to remind me?" He guffawed and I really need soap for my brain. Ugh, that image…

Anyway we continued on out of the Diamond Quarter and into the Commons. Zevran and I went into Tapster's to pick up our members. I saw Talen eating a hamburger with Sten and Leliana at his table.

"Come on guys, we got work to do."

"Bush Mm not done!" Talen said, his mouth full of food.

"Did you pay for it? Just take it with you. Hey Terol, can he take it out?"

"Go ahead kid." He said from the back. They looked busy as ever.

"He eats like a dathrasi." Sten said, getting up with Leliana.

"What's that?" I asked.

"In your language it is referred to as 'a pig.'"

"Hey!" I laughed. We joined up with the group and we went past the gates into Dust Town. We ran into some trouble when a few Carta members ambushed us. They were only five of them and we ran through them almost literally. Alfred was wagging his tail and he bumped his nose in my hand. We finally reached the cul-de-sac. The dwarves were eyeing us. No big surprise there. I went to the door that the Thug told me about.

"This should be the door…yep there's the slot. Put the carved bone token here." Derek did so and the door unlocked.

"Alright, keep your wits about you and don't die." Derek said. Right now we just got through the main guards. Gotta stop writing now.

* * *

The whole base was literally a maze with tunnels that sometimes led nowhere or to a cave in. It was still similar to the map I could remember though.

We went through a long hallway where, at the end, we found the doorman. Derek pounded the door. He eventually broke it down with his hammer.

"Hey! What's the password?" The doorman asked.

"How about Jarvia sucks lizard eggs?"

"We got a martyr boys."

It was 6 against 10. I gotta admit that two-handed weapons really get the job done. They all rushed us and two kept themselves to the shadows. Most of them had light armor. Alfred went for one while Sten and Derek swung their weapons to keep them away. Leliana struck one down with her bow. Two were able to pass the mêlée fighters and tried to go for MTW. Zevran and I made sure they didn't get a single hit in. I crouched and upper cutted one, smashing his teeth in. After he went down, I punched him repeatedly until he stopped moving. First group were all done in. I knelt to the dwarf I just fought. He was still breathing.

"Looks like Nadezda wasn't kidding when she said that Jarvia got paranoid." Derek said, wiping the blood off his face. It didn't really matter though since most of the blood stayed on his beard anyway.

"You know why she got paranoid?" Talen asked.

"Yeah. I killed the last boss. After I got out, I knew she would tighten things around here. I didn't think that she would go off the deep end. Peh, it's better if we don't have the Carta. Bhelen promised me that he would enlist the Carta in the army if all things go well. Anyway, let's keep going. We aren't going to get anything done talking politics."

We kept going through old Dust Town. It was a large cave with natural glowstones. It would have been so cool, if it wasn't for the Carta trying to kill us all. I saw a corridor with a bunch of barrels.

"It seems that they have prepared for our arrival." Leliana said. Then the door opened. 7 came out, but they didn't pass the barrels. I was able to see a few more dwarves inside the room as well. Talen decided to throw a good fireball. The barrels were filled with oil which trapped them on their side. Morrigan, Talen, and Leliana were throwing spell and arrows at them. By the time the oil had burned off, there were only three outside the door.

Alfred and Eren rushed them, giving Sten and Derek a chance to go through the door. I went for one and knocked him out cold. I tried not to kill them at least.

There were only three left in the room. They were quickly cut down by the Sten/Derek combo.

"Let's check the room for anything useful." Derek said.

"Oh my. They have a wide assortments of poisons." Zevran said. He took out the best ones and a few bombs. It was slightly disorienting to be around this place. Derek didn't have too much trouble maneuvering it though. It seemed that they changed the tunnels only slightly. So through the rooms we go. We actually met a few qunari mercenaries as well.

"Woah!" I managed to roll out of the way before the mercenary got my head. The part that really made this fight a bit harder, was the fact that the Carta members had crossbows. Those hurt like a bitch. Sten roared facing off with the qunari. I dealt a few blows to the archers before he knocked me on the head. The battle blurred and I felt a blow on my shoulder. I heard a faint pop and my arm became useless. I shook myself out of it and Alfred was mauling the archer. More of the Carta came out of the rooms to hit us. Talen and Morrigan were flinging fire spells and Wynne had her hands full trying to make sure all of us were ok.

Leliana didn't have a lot of leg room to work with, but her arrows rang true most of the time. Eren and Alistair were beasts with their shields. The blood bath ended. I hissed in pain and grabbed my arm.

"What happened?" Eren asked.

"I dislocated my arm."

"We're going to need to pop it back into place." Alistair said.

"I know how to do this." Zevran said. He grabbed at my arm. "It is better to hold onto someone or at least bite down on a piece of leather. I wouldn't want you to sever your tongue."

"Just do it Zevran." So he did and my colorful vocabulary came out.

"How many curse words do you know?" Talen asked. I rubbed my arm a bit before Wynne came and soothed it a bit.

"A lot."

"Let's go. The more we stayed in one place, the better these guys will be ready for us." Derek said, spitting out some blood. He got decked with a hammer to the face earlier. Even with the helmets that Mikhael supplied us, we got hit if angled correctly. So we continued on. Every door we opened, about 20 dwarves were waiting for us.

"Out of my way!" Derek shouted. It was a mass of bodies spraying blood and sweat. Zevran's tactics worked beautifully in close combat. Dwarves were shorter than me. A good conk in the head and then a punch to their throats and they were out. I was coated in blood before you knew it. It almost scared me how well I was doing. Before just doing this would keep me up at night. Now it was almost like breathing. Offering my prayers at night kept the monster inside at bay, but for how long? Will I be bringing this bloodshed with me once I go home? No I'm getting off topic again.

Sten and Derek were each swinging their two handed weapons. Bodies kept flying everywhere. Those that were unlucky enough to hit the floor were quickly killed by Alfred. Eren and Alistair made sure to protect MTW. Zevran and I went complete haywire and went off getting weak points after weak points. Battles ended when we walked into the room.

One battle was extremely hard. There were a few Carta members but also another qunari and an elf mage. The mage always gave the group hard times. She managed to freeze Alistair before he got to her. She did a few scorching spells on all of us before Eren took her out.

"Am I missing an eyebrow?" Derek asked.

"Slightly." I said.

We're resting now before we're going to continue on. My handwriting looks like chicken scratch. Well break time over.

* * *

"Why is it that every single door we open there are dwarves waiting to kill us?" Alistair said.

"Because that's their job." Derek said. Another room cleared yet again. Zevran got an arrow through the forearm. Wynne is started to get tired.

"We should probably stick to potions now. Wynne and I are getting tired." Talen said, wiping off some blood on his face.

"Let us continue." Sten said. I wiped off some blood from my blades before following. We went through a side corridor and I remember there being a trap here. Unfortunately Eren went ahead and tripped it anyway. Wynne, luckily, managed to summon a magical barrier to protect him. It didn't stop the momentum though and Eren flew over our group. He groaned in pain, just getting a few scrapes and burns.

"Repeat after me Eren: Barrels are bad news." He just glared at me, using a potion to heal some of the burns he got from the trap. "Come on, you won't learn if you don't say it."

"Barrels are bad news." He mumbled. Talen snickered.

"Good boy."

Alfred barked.

-/-

We reached the prison cells.

"Poor sods. Jarvia must be on a rampage." Derek said. The cells were filled with bodies and the stench was overwhelming.

"You thinking of something?" Eren asked. Derek took a look in the cells. That could have been him. It would have been him if I didn't come into this world. He would have been behind those cells, a rotting corpse like the rest of them. He sighed.

"…Nah. Let's keep going."

So I'm just going to shorten this part. I did watch a man go through many stages of poisoning in a very short time. Very interesting experience actually. It made me a bit squeamish though. This is why I keep away from Zevran and whatever he's pouring on his weapon.

-/-

So we finally reached Jarvia and Derek met his old friend Leske. I recognized him when we were passing out food to the casteless, but he didn't approach us. We walked through the door and Jarvia was there with Leske and a few more dwarves surrounding her. She looked at us with rage but Derek wasn't focused on her. He was focused on Leske.

"So, you finally got what you wanted didn't you, you little piece of nugshit." Derek said, taking out his hammer.

"You know how things work down here. Or maybe you forgotten. Let me enlighten you again!" Jarvia had this massive crossbow. I counted 5 cronies plus Leske. Derek and him were already going through the motions of a very painful break.

I went straight for the traps. I cut the lines with my daggers, but Jarvia caught on. She grabbed to twin daggers that were on her hips and we started to brawl. She was like me in a way. We both had on medium armor and fought with dual wield. She was a slippery one though. Every single time I thought I had her, she would find a hole to slip through. I was the same way. Those rolls really helped.

I kept hitting her where I know the armor would dent in the right way to get into her defenses. She nicked me on several places, but the armor was holding out. Whatever Mikhael did to it really worked. At one point both of our hands got really bloody and it was getting harder and harder to hold onto our weapons. One of her daggers slipped, but Jarvia got faster knowing that she didn't have to deal with only one dagger.

She managed to kick me, but I got her leg and threw her into the barrels. I smelled the oil in the air. It was leaking everywhere. I only saw one good solution.

"Talen! Shoot the barrels! Now!" He summoned up a fireball. Jarvia gave me this incredulous look before I was able to roll out of the way. Great balls of fire! Literally. The room smelled like cooked meat and not the good kind. The smell with probably haunt me now.

"Are you alright?" Alistair said, helping me up.

"Yeah."

"Holy Maker! Are you alright?" Leliana said, coming up to me. She wasn't worse for wear.

"What?"

"You're covered in blood missy." Derek said, looking at the body of his ex friend.

"Well yeah, did you see the knife fight I just had?"

"If we had a mirror, your face would be red and not in the usual way. Here." Talen said, giving me a potion. I drank it and took out a small handkerchief that I carried around. The Carta is dead. We did it. Holy shit I'm tired.

"If we can move on?" Sten said.

"Let's get out of here." Eren said. Talen went into Jarvia's room to put in the papers Bhelen gave to us. Derek and Eren tried to find a way out, while I tried to make myself more presentable. I looked at the room another time. Dust Town. If Orzammar wasn't so tied with traditions then it would be a good city to stay in but they're killing themselves slowly but surely. It was sad. What was sadder was that I couldn't do anything. The only one that could do something for the city was Bhelen and Derek, if he wanted to.

Let's go. The stink here is starting to get to me." Of course we ended up in a small staircase leading up to a big wooden circular door. Derek and Sten moved it and dirt started to pour out. Once the dust settled we came out and startled the shopkeeper. Eren tried to reason with him but he promptly kicked us out. The 4 GWs went ahead toward the Diamond Quarter to tell Bhelen the good news. I looked back toward the path that held the casteless.

I have a bleeding heart. I really wished that I could do something but at this point I couldn't do anything. Maybe once all of this blight business settles down, I could come back here with Derek with a few ideas that would help them. Until then, all I could do is just keep fighting.

* * *

**So Jarvia is gone, you know what that means? Deep Roads time.**

**Shout out to snowowl94, ferpet, and Devils rivale for favoriting/following this story!**

**KrystylSky: **_LOL I had way too much fun writing that chapter. I'm glad you enjoyed it_ :3  
**ferpet: **_I'm glad you're enjoying it!_ :D  
**chaosrin: **_Nah that won't ever happen. Orzammar and their traditions you know? And you can only be a Paragon if you do something that would better their whole entire species as a whole. Fancy cooking doesn't do much you know but there might be something in the future of the series..._

**OOH! My favorite part is going to happen! Anyone want to guess at what's going to happen in the deep roads? Please R&amp;R :D**


	26. Deep Roads Time!

Day 10

When we got back from killing the carta yesterday, the GWs went ahead to meet up with Bhelen. I decided to turn in early after taking a small bath. Sleep went well, no dreams or going into the fade. I woke up and I was tired from yesterday. I rolled around in my bed, getting comfortable but eventually I decided to go to breakfast. Wynne was already there talking to Leliana.

"Good Morning Nia." Wynne said.

"Morning." I yawned. "Man, I still feel tired from yesterday. Did anyone hear what Bhelen had to say?" Leto gave me a plate of eggs with some of that green moss. I thanked him while he went back to do his chores.

"Nothing so far." Leliana said. I heard the door open and in came Alistair.

"Morning." I said. The eggs were delicious.

"Oh good morning." I saw Alistair steal a glance to Leliana but she didn't really pay much attention to him. He sat next to me.

"So anything new from the guy we're working for?"

"Well…about that…" The door slammed open. Eren, Derek, Talen, Sten, and Morrigan all came in. I took a glance at Alistair and he shrugged sheepishly.

"Hey Eren, so is everything ok?"

"Not really missy." Derek said. Eren sighed and rubbed his face. He had bags under his eyes. It didn't seem that he slept all that well.

"I see that almost everyone is here so I might as well tell you all the news; We are heading into the Deep Roads." Eren said.

"Bhelen said that we needed to find Branka. The sodding woman hasn't been seen in 2 years. No one knows where she is or if she's even alive."

"It's the only way we can sway the assembly. Sounds like a pile of nug crap." Talen said.

"Took the words right out of my mouth." Derek said.

"Why not just force the dwarves into servitude?" Morrigan asked.

"You want to fight all of the assembly then be my guest, it still won't get us the soldiers we need." Derek said, sitting down and groaning.

"When will we leave?" Sten asked.

"As soon as possible. We'll be bringing a month's supply of food and water. Derek the map if you please?" Derek spread the map of Deep Road tunnels. "This was the Aeducan Thaig that we were able to secure for the mean time. From what Bhelen's men told us the last known expedition of Branka's was here in Caridin's Cross. I don't know how long it'll take us to get there, but this is what we need to do to finally get these dwarves rallied for us. I won't lie, this is going to be extremely treacherous. This is the Deep Roads. Darkspawn will be plentiful and if one of you gets tainted, you can't be saved. Gather all you can, pray to whatever you believe in, as soon as we get our supplies, we will move."

"No pressure." I said, eating the last of my eggs. I heard the door click and Zevran finally came.

"Ah such a wonderful day, but from the look of your somber faces, it will change, no?"

"Nia explain it to him. Grey Wardens, I'm going to need to speak to all of you." Eren said. All the GWs went and followed him out the room. Zevran came and took Alistair's seat. I explained to him what the GWs said while the rest of us absorbed the information.

"So we are going into the land of the darkspawn to win the favor of the politicians? Sounds like mierda to me." Zevran said, taking a gulp of brandy that Leto had found for him.

"There's nothing we can do about it. All we can do is just hope for the best and pray that this can get over with quickly." Wynne said.

"And what if one of our members becomes tainted?" Leliana wondered.

"Well, knowing Eren, I say that he's probably telling the guys that they will have to put us down. We can't be turning into ghouls now can we?"

"And so we venture forth into almost certain death." Morrigan smirked.

"Sounds like a typical Tuesday. Hey Leto, wanna help me pack?"

"Of course my lady." So I left the group and went over to the kitchens to get the packs and also the water skins that we're going to take with us. We mostly packed the packs with dry goodies that won't spoil for a while. Bread, jerky, cheese, some butter, a few dried fruit. The route was explained to me further by Talen, who went into the kitchens to steal more food. He told me we were going to follow a water source. That meant that we didn't need to carry as much water, but one small barrel would be useful.

I made sure that my armor was fit to perform and that my daggers were sharpened. I couldn't believe that this was happening. This was much easier in-game where you could just easily fast travel. This was going to take a while. Although the caves were beautiful, I preferred the outdoors. I heard a knock on my door as I finished putting in my black outfit. It was Derek.

"Hey Derek, how goes preparations?"

"All is well. Just one thing of course. Eren had told me to go around and see if we can place a few quick runes on our weapons and armor. Apparently Bodahn and his son are just outside the Hall of Heroes. You want something enchanted?"

"Of course! I'll go with you. So is anyone else coming with us?"

"Alistair and Eren already left to go get theirs. Sten didn't want one and Zevran is just by the gates waiting for us." As we got out of the compound, Zevran was there.

"Ah mi niña, let us be off. We must fight these monstros with our very best, no?"

"Yep." So onto the Commons then the Hall of Heroes. We got out and boy was it cold!

"Holy shit! Woah! I can see my breath." So I blew again. Don't look at me that way, I express myself this way! Zevran chuckled.

"Hey Bodahn!"

"Ah Ser Derek! Welcome, come to look at my wares again?"

"Nope. We're wondering if your son can do some enchantments for us."

"Enchantment!"

"Well let's see what you are requesting, shall we?" Sandal was able to make my armor shield against normal attacks fairly well. Derek made sure to hammer it to make sure. No more dents! My weapons were also imbued with a rune to weaken darkspawn and a lighting rune. It looked pretty awesome. Zevran got the increased attack against darkspawn and added protection on his armor. Derek started to go into more complicated rune work with Sandal when I decided to go back in to get warm.

"Oooh! Well, I guess this means winter has started huh?" I said, trying to get the snow off my boots. Zevran was inspecting his daggers.

"Yes. It will be difficult to travel once we leave."

"Yeah. Well, let's go. We can't keep Eren and the others waiting. If you ask me, I want to get through this as fast as possible."

"I do not think it will be that facil mi niña."

"Oh yeah, you got that right."

So we all gathered in the dining room. It seemed that Leliana and Alistair weren't talking to each other. He would occasional glance at her with this wistful look about him. I felt bad for him, but you can't force someone to have feelings for you.

"I have an announcement to make. If anyone of you would like to have one final night of pleasure, I will make the sacrifice to make that happen." Zevran said. I started to laugh along with Leliana. "No? Wynne my lovely fine mujer-"

"Do not think that I will accept that offer."

"Morrigan, mi belleza negra?"

"Touch me and I will boil the liquid in your body."

"Alistair, my-"

"Oh Maker no!"

"Don't look at me or I'll set your hair on fire."

"Mi niña preciosa?"

"Sorry Zevran, I'm going to have to pass on that offer."

"Such a shame to all of you."

"Hey why didn't you ask Derek?" Talen asked.

"If my ears didn't deceive me, I believe he has already found a beautiful flower, no?" Derek guffawed and I noticed one of the girl servants, Haile, had very red cheeks. Eren strode in the room with Alfred at his side.

"So, we got everything ready. Let's go." Eren had his boss face on. It was a bit silent as we made our way out of the compound. Leto prayed to the Ancestors for us. I prayed as well. I hoped that me being here hasn't changed anything. I really don't want anyone to die. As we made our way to the Deep Roads, all of the dwarves stopped what they were doing and looked at us. The news of us looking for Branka probably spread. We were at the opening to the Deep Roads when a familiar red beard came towards us.

"So that bit of the Grey Wardens looking for Branka was serious huh?" A wild Oghren has appeared!

"Of course we were serious Oghren. You're going to tell us why you're here?" Derek said.

"Heh, old nug thumper."

"Ale sucker."

"Decrepit geezer."

"Bronco rider."

"You wanna say that again?" Oghren growled.

"Can you stop insulting each other and tell us what's going on here?" Talen said.

"I want in. These people don't care about Branka as a person! All they did was just forget and leave Branka in the Deep Roads like a rotting darkspawn corpse. I'm the last of the house and _I'm_ the one who knows the most about Branka. If we pool our knowledge, we might have a sodding chance at finding her. Branka was looking for the Anvil of the Voids, the secret to building Golems centuries ago. It was created by the Paragon Caridin and, with it, came 100 years of peace in Orzammar."

"It's probably why we're going to Caridin's Cross in the first place." Alistair mumbled.

"Actually the Anvil was built in the Ortan Thaig. Unfortunately no one has seen that Thaig for five hundred years. All she knew is that it was past Caridin's Cross."

"We got maps. Get on board Oghren if you got the stones for it." Derek said. Oghren roared a laugh.

"Then let's get moving you old nug fart. Branka isn't going to sodding find herself."

So onto the yellow brick road! Oh wait, wrong story. Well, I'll stop here for today. I got a lot of walking ahead of me.

Day 11

Not much has happened. We got into a scuffle with a few deepstalkers but nothing major so far. The Deep Roads are quiet during the blight. Less darkspawn in the tunnels, more on the surface! We followed the old path toward the Aeducan Thaig but we took another turn toward Caridin's Cross. A whole day of walking so far. My feet are killing me. Oh I would love to have inserts and memory foam boots.

"Talen are you reaching into your food pack again?" I asked. He just looked at me with a guilty face.

"Uhh, no?" Alistair snickered beside him.

"Oh yeah, that was so convincing. We are going to be here for a while. You're just going to have to tell your stomach to calm down." Cue the stomach growling. Yes we laughed. Talen grumbled and I just shook my head.

"So you have been looking for this woman Branka for 2 years my dwarven friend?" Zevran asked.

"I'm not your friend elf and yeah, I'm the only one still looking."

"This reminds me of another person with a paired someone."

"One of you is sodding married too?"

"Only one of us." Wynne said.

"She has been looking for a way to go home to her family for 3 years." Leliana explained.

"Hey guys, I'm right here. I can speak for myself you know."

"3 years!? Have you even bucked the forbidden horse in all that time?"

"What!? No! Why does everyone ask me that?"

"Tis a wonder how you even survived for long."

"Oh God, look sex isn't everything ok?"

"Is that what we're talking about?" Alistair grew three shades of red.

"Well yeah, I thought that it was obvious." Talen said. "Oh Maker, you're a virgin!" I smacked him in the arm for that. "Ow! What was that for?"

"Talen you just don't go around announcing that! That was extremely rude!"

"It's true though." Eren commented.

"Why are we even talking about this?" Alistair said with his face in his hands. He resembled a tomato. Nope, make that a beet. Throughout all of this I found it funny that Sten only judged us. And also smiled at our silliness.

"I knew I smelled purity." Oghren chuckled.

"Oh stop it. He just not has had the opportunity." Leliana said.

"I think we're just making it worse." I said. Derek laughed out loud and poor Alistair was probably dying of embarrassment now.

"Why did you even point me out Talen? Aren't you one too?"

"Nope. I lost it almost a year before Duncan recruited me."

"It was that young blood mage that he set free back in the Tower." Derek said.

"So everyone has already…?"

"You're just going to have to accept that you're the only virgin in the group Alistair." I said.

"If you really want to change that Alistair, all you need to do is ask." Zevran asked.

"Andraste's flaming sword, no! And what about Sten? You haven't asked him yet!" We all looked at Sten.

"I do not think that type of information should be made known." He huffed but I did see that tiny smirk for a quick second.

"Really? You too?!" Alistair said, putting his face in his hands.

"I think we should stop teasing him." Wynne said.

"There's not much we can do. All we've been doing is just walking! My fingers are twitching because I haven't set something on fire for a while."

"Talen I'm starting to think you might need some sort of help."

-/-

I spread myself on my bed roll, trying to get all the kinks out. I cracked everything I think. Leliana is already asleep next to me. Derek has first watch. This is going to be a long mission. We're going to have to go through Caridin's Cross, Ortan Thaig, the Dead Trenches, and then the Anvil of the Void. Man I hate traveling. I want to do something. I'm not like Talen that wants to set fire to everything though.

But I do know my limitations. I am only human. Alistair got more holes in his socks. I'm starting to think his callouses are making the holes.

Well it's better to get rest now than later. Night, or is it?

Day 15

We finally reached Caridin's Cross. Oghren told us about how this was the crossroads and that we would definitely find the path to the Ortan Thaig. Of course we fought the hired goons from Harrowmont. 3 against 11? They didn't stand a chance. I'm surprised that they got ahead of us. We didn't see them at all.

"There are plenty of tunnels down here. Wouldn't surprise me that they had their own maps." Oghren said, wiping the blood off his axe.

"They must have been running for quite a distance." Zevran said.

"Doesn't matter know, they're dead. Come on, the faster we find the way to the Ortan Thaig, the faster we find Branka."

"It looks like the path up ahead is blocked. We're going to have to take one of the side passages." Eren said. We passed by a couple of dead Genlock. They were probably killed by the goons that are lying dead on the floor. The GWs put on their game faces.

"You feel that?" Derek said.

"Oh yeah. There's a lot of darkspawn ahead of us." Talen said.

"More to run my axe through." Oghren chuckled.

"What can you sense Alistair?" Eren asked.

"15 up ahead. I'm guessing I don't need to remind any of you that getting darkspawn blood on you would be very bad."

"Let's just go kill this things!" Oghren said, rushing through the passage. We found the big cavern with the stone bridge. We were hit by 5 first. A few genlocks and Hurlocks. Eren had yelled for us to stay back and to only deliver the killing blow. The 4 GWs and Alfred did their thing and made sure that no darkspawn would target us. Zevran and I would sneak past and delivered killing blows. Having 3 guys with two handed weapons is really handy, get it? Oh that was horrible. Sten, Derek, and Oghren were ripping through the darkspawn like butter.

The first battle was won, but there was the last 10 we had to deal with. A couple of arrows whished by my head as we continued onward. An emissary was right in front of us and summoned an earthquake.

"Wah!"

"Nug balls!"

"You little piece of-" Talen was able to summon a fireball and aimed right at the group of darkspawn that were laughing at us. Steaming pile of corpses now.

"Well, that was harder than usual." Alistair said. I tried getting up, but right then my knee decided to lock.

"Frick!"

"Are you alright Nia?" Wynne said.

"Yeah, I'm fine. My knee just popped out of its socket. Just give it a minute, it'll slip in, in a moment."

"Isn't that painful?" Leliana asked.

"If I try to stretch it out yeah, but, oh there it goes." I stood up and tested my knee. "That hasn't happened in a while."

"Come on, there are more darkspawn ahead." Eren said. We reached the bridge and the Hurlock Alpha was there, but it wasn't moving.

"Don't go up there. I bet you 10 silvers that there are traps up there." I said.

"I shall take that wager." Zevran said. Leliana began to pelt it with arrows while the MTW did combination spells on it. That made it mad and it rushed over. Leliana pinned its leg and Eren was able to quickly kill it. As we climbed the bridge, we found some foot hold traps.

"It seems you have won mi niña."

"You can pay me later."

"There are more up ahead." Sten said. Sure enough 4 genlocks were waiting for us at the end of the bridge. Alfred went and took one down. Eren and Alistair kept the other two busy while Derek cleaved the last one in half.

"Whoa!" Talen shouted. 4 more genlocks appeared right behind us. Luckily Talen was right with us and held their attention. I quickly ran down the bridge and did the hammer arm on one Genlock. Talen got down with two others with the help of Morrigan. The last two focused on me. Luckily Zevran was able to cut down one as he sneaked behind it. I decked the last one in the face and swished my dagger right through his eye. Unfortunately this meant that we got separated from the main group.

We ran up the bridge again. Everyone was fighting everywhere. It was hard to keep track of so many bodies. I didn't even try to count how many darkspawn were around us. Zevran and I just gave each other a small look before crashing our way into the fight.

It was at this point I pissed myself a bit because I tripped then something grabbed my ankle and started to drag me away. This was the first time I had seen a Shriek and let me tell you, it was not pretty. First the smell was horrible. Second, all they wore were these tight rags. Third, they didn't have hands but more like claws. Fourth, I don't go more than kissing on the first date! Unfortunately everyone was way too busy to notice that the Shriek kept dragging me away. Sten and Zevran were battling the two other Shriek that made themselves known. I used my daggers to get out of the Shriek's grasp. There was no way in hell that I was becoming a Broodmother.

I managed to roll and tripped the Shriek. I got on top of it and bashed in its head. It was mostly out of fear and anger fueling my fists. I was nearly dragged away. I finally stopped when its head was nonexistent. The battle was going on behind m and I headed over to help.

Then I heard a vicious roar over all the fighting. I haven't seen a real ogre besides the fade one. The fade one wasn't nearly as scary because the fade was always blurry to me. It stomps nearly cracked the ground, its horns massive as well as its jaws. I instinctively took a couple of steps back, my eyes wide with horror. That moment of fear didn't last long though.

More genlocks were coming towards us. I had to focus on them. Let the GWs handle the ogre. These guys didn't wear any helmets, so I kept on bashing them in the skull. The genlocks fell easy, but the ogre was still there. I saw Morrigan was able to freeze it and everyone jumped on him. A good hit on one side, and it shattered. The battle was over. Talen and Wynne did their best to heal the GWs. They were the ones that were hit the most.

We're resting in the cavern now. Eren and Talen were picking apart the corpses to see if there was anything useful. We're not running low on supplies but you never know.

"The darkspawn nearly dragged you away." Sten said, coming up to me as I was writing.

"I know. That was a scary experience."

"Why was it dragging you away is the question." Talen said, taking a sip from his waterskin. I knew the real reason, but I didn't want them to know. We were going to see that Broodmother eventually. Well Derek called the break over. Got to go.

* * *

**Deep Roads man, Deep Roads. Can you imagine traveling through them? Ugh, I like my open sky thank you every much.**

**Shout out to Andraste's Flaming Sword (lol), emelian65, Lady Deebo, and LadyAliera for following/favoriting this story!**

**shinedown: **_Nope still no pairings as of_ yet.  
**KrystylSky: **_It's sad that you never get a happy ending for the dwarves unless you're one yourself. That might change though...  
_**Biorr the Old: **_Nope the middle child is dead in this fic. As are the other origin_ possibilities.  
**efdfd, EG: **_Thank you for the Christmas wishes :3  
_**redrosemary: **_I think out of all the characters, Oghren is the hardest for me to write...hopefully I did him justice.  
_**emelian65: **_Wow tienes muchos corazones! Ya se que todavia tengo errores. Voy a agarrar un vacacion de mi estoria para escribir mas y para tener chance de corejirlo. Ya se que quieres Talen x Zevran pero ya tengo todos los relaciones en mi mente. Perdon -_- Y ya se si Zevran no tiene un amistad fuerte con nadie va decidir morir en Denerim pero no voy hacer eso! Vas a ver en el futuro que si va sobrevivir :3_

**Thank you ZA, Wadoo, ROYGBIV for your reviews!**

**~I'm dreaming of a white Christmas~ Full of reviews from you guys! :D**


	27. The Crossroads

Caridin's Cross Continued

"We should be nearing the crossroads." Oghren said. We followed more of the side passages. We haven't found more darkspawn since the cavern. There were a few deepstalkers, but they were easily taken care of. The only thing we have to watch for for with the deepstalkers is that they have poisonous spit.

"I'm sensing a lot more darkspawn up ahead." Alistair explained.

"This is the Deep Roads. If there were no darkspawn, twould be extremely rare." Morrigan said.

We found a group of 3 plus a bronco. The bronco looked extremely cool. Think of a rhino with added horns. Then the darkspawn made it charge toward us. That was not fun. Sten had grabbed it by the horns when it tried to run him over. Alistair and Eren both went after the 3 genlocks while MTW tried to make the bronco die. It must have been a very hardy animal because it took quite a bit of spells and Oghren to kill it. It made me sad a little. A grand beast like that shouldn't be made to fight.

"There are more up ahead. Keep your guard up." Derek said. We found more genlocks but some ran into a side passage.

"The Crossroads are up ahead!" Oghren shouted. He delved right into the fighting. Alfred had chased down the runners and Oghren went right up ahead into a trap. Barrels exploded which caused more than a few more darkspawn to notify them of our position. Eren, Morrigan, and Sten had chased after Alfred and the runners. The rest of us were left to clear out the Crossroads. Genlocks used the ballistas sparingly which was good for us. The bad thing was that there was an emissary in their ranks.

They used the old grease and fire to block the way we came from. Luckily none of us had to pass through. Derek and Oghren was a pair of buddies that kept ramming every single darkspawn. Zevran and I made sure that our daggers found their underbellies.

Then things got harder when a bronco came out of nowhere and knocked out both of the heavy blades. Alistair had to make sure that he got the attention of the darkspawn. Good thing Wynne and Talen were here, but they were quickly running out of juice.

Then the bronco focused on me. It started to charge towards me and I did my roll out of the way. It had destroyed two ballistas and kept charging.

"Oof!" Talen had grabbed onto the bronco's horn so it wouldn't pierce him, but now the animal was bucking.

"Talen!" Alistair had shouted.

"Go get him! We will handle this fight!" Zevran shouted. Alistair looked to us and then to Talen. Leliana kept the darkspawn distracted long enough for Alistair to choose the bronco. I had managed to decapitate the emissary, but there were still more darkspawn.

"I'm out of arrows!"

Shit. I grabbed one of the longswords on the ground and tossed it near Leliana. She had grabbed it and protected Wynne from the darkspawn. Considering that I didn't feel her healing energy for a while, meant that she was already at her limit.

That's when I saw Alistair and Talen come back to where we were. Talen's staff had a whirl of fire over it. I recognized this stance. I grabbed Zevran from dealing his blow and ran over to where Leliana and Wynne were.

"Take this you tainted bastards!" Talen had summoned an inferno right over our heads. It smelled disgusting, but the creatures were finally put in their place. I panted out of exhaustion and sat down on a boulder near us.

"How is everyone? Status!" Alistair shouted.

"I don't have any arrows, but no injuries."

"I might need a breather." Wynne said.

"Muy bien, here."

"Ditto with Zevran. Holy, Talen what happened to your robes?" They were nearly nonexistent and frayed.

"Tch, the bronco's horn shred it to pieces. I guess I should count myself lucky that I wasn't gored."

"You have the Maker's luck Talen." Leliana said. He just rubbed his cheek sheepishly.

"I haven't heard from the others." Alistair said. So we went to search for Derek and Oghren. They were lying in a pile together out cold.

"Leave them there, I'll check them out. Wynne, you sit down and rest." Talen said. Leliana helped her sit. I kept looking down the corridor where the others went to. The grease fire was still raging. Even if they did come back, they wouldn't be able to come to us.

"Are you worried?" Leliana asked.

"Of course I am. They are only four of them. I just wish this fire would go out so I could see if I could help."

"Mi niña, you are already so tired. It would be best if we just rest and catch our breath, no?"

"Yeah, I guess so. I hate feeling so useless."

"Useless?" Zevran chuckled. "You are far from useless my dangerous dancer."

"Dancer?"

"Well your moves a bit more crude than mine, but you still have quite a bit of finesse in the way you fight."

"Thanks Zevran." I heard a couple of groans and curses.

"Get off of me you shriveled pair of nug sack!"

"You're the one that's grabbing, you lyrium addled deepstalker!"

"Well at least we know that both of them are alright." I said, getting up. I felt tired, super tired. Oghren was explaining the path towards the Ortan Thaig, but Eren and the others haven't come back yet. After a few minutes more, we'll be heading over to where they are. Then I heard a bark. Alfred had come to us from another passage in the crossroads.

"Alfred!" He ran up to me and gave me a few doggy kisses.

"Talen, Wynne!" Eren yelled. I saw him running towards us with Morrigan in his arms. He had blood spattered all over him. Talen and Wynne ran up to him and I followed.

"We were hit by a powerful Ogre. It grabbed onto Morrigan and-"

"Set her down. Talen, do you have a lyrium potion?"

"Right here. Don't take too much of it." They began healing her. There was too much blood for me to see what was wrong with her. Eren had collapsed on the floor next to where they were healing her.

"Eren, where's Sten?"

"The ogre knocked him out. If you could-"

"Alistair, Derek, we have to go get Sten."

"Right." Alistair and Derek followed me as we went down the stone path and found the small side passage they mostly came from. The cave curved with various dead ends, but we finally found a slew of darkspawn corpses and a giant ogre. Sten was knocked out against the wall, his forehead was bleeding slightly, his helmet gone. I took out a potion from my pack and tried to wake him up.

"Sten? Hey." He groaned and coughed lightly.

"Vashedan…"

"I know, take this." He gave me a look. "Don't give me that. You want to slow us down?" He reluctantly took it and drank.

"If you need some help getting up, let us know."

"Just get him Alistair. A knock to the head isn't anything to laugh at. We have to be careful."

"I am fine."

"You shush and let him help you. Head injuries can be fatal even after a couple of hours."

"Just lean on me slightly, slightly!" I admit it was funny seeing Sten being helped by Alistair. Sten still had slight vertigo from his head injury. Once we finally came back, tents were already being made for our makeshift camp.

"I'm guessing we're going to be staying here for a bit?"

"Morrigan still needs time to heal and everyone is exhausted. So yeah, we're staying." Talen said, eating his bread. Sten sat down and I started to look around for at least a helmet. I knew that emissaries sometime came with one, but I couldn't find any through the bodies. Out of pure luck, I did find a chest.

"I wonder how long this has been here for?" Leliana asked. It was locked so, naturally, I called on her.

"Do you think you can open it?" She gave me a sly smile and took out a small pack with lockpicks and things of that nature.

"Do you want to try?"

"Oh geez, no. I've ruined more locks than opened. I'm fine with watching."

"Suit yourself. There." We heard the lock and it opened. By the luck of God, we found two helmets. Ask and you shall receive.

"And what have we here my two beautiful goddesses?"

"Helmets. Wow, they're pretty sturdy too. I'll take this one to Sten." Everyone had already settled in their cots for the day, besides Talen, Eren, and Sten. Talen was till periodically checking on Morrigan. Hopefully we can find that water stream again to at least help her clean up.

"Here Sten, I got you a helmet."

"My thanks." It fit him. Now I've settled into my own tent. Eren and Talen are still out there. I hope Morrigan is alright. I don't really trust her, but I know she didn't deserve this. Well, time to sleep.

Day 16

Ah yes the blurriness of the fade. It was a very welcome distraction from reality. Speaking of which, I was wondering if Morrigan was around here. So I walked around trying to look for someone, or something. Well preferably someone. Something felt off though. I didn't feel comfortable and my hair was standing on end.

"Nia." I got startled and turned around. Wynne was standing right behind me.

"Hey Wynne, I was wondering when I would find someone. Have you seen Morrigan around?"

"No. I have only seen you."

"Well, let's go and find her. I'm worried if she's doing ok." Wynne nodded and we started to walk. I guess the island that we were one was a pretty big one. It was sparse as well. Usually my trips to the fade had a lot of buildings, forests, or things that made it at least look friendly. This time, though, something was wrong. Something felt off. The more I walked, the less I felt safe. I stopped while Wynne kept going.

"Is there something wrong Nia?"

There was only one thing that felt off. I stared at her. It looked like Wynne, but I got the sinking feeling that it wasn't Wynne. There wasn't that motherly sort of affection when fake Wynne looked at me. It looked more like smugness.

"Yeah there is. You aren't Wynne." It gave me a creepy smile.

"What makes you say that?"

"You aren't her. I know." I felt alarm bells in my stomach. The fake Wynne began to walk toward me. I tried pinching myself to wake up but to no avail. It laughed at me.

"You really think doing something simple will be enough to escape me?" It inched closer, its eyes were black and numb. I felt paralyzed, but I have to get out of there. So I closed my eyes and tried to feel for that energy from before. It was like a hot ball right in the pit of my belly. So I mentally grabbed for it. I felt the power surge through my body yet again. All I could see was bright light. I heard an echo of a roar. Then I woke up when Leliana was shaking me.

"Nia! Wake up!" The bright light had followed me out, but it was different in the real world. For a split second it was like viewing Leliana through a lens, tunnel vision. Then the power became unbearable again. The light from my eyes faded, and I promptly threw up the moment I got out of the tent. What was really eye opening, was not that I threw up again. It was that blood was mixed in it as well.

"Nia!" I heard Eren run up to me. I felt woozy and light headed and weak.

"Holy Maker what was that?"

"Wh-Wha?" Alistair said, almost literally rolling out of his tent.

"Darkspawn?" Derek said, tripping over his cot. Eren pinched his nose.

"No, just Nia. Someone wake up Talen please." Eren gave me his waterskin and I rinsed and spit.

"You have a nosebleed."

"I noticed."

"Nia…what…what?"

"Sorry you had to see that." I tilted my head so the bleeding can just go down my throat.

"What did you actually see Leliana?"

"Her skin cracked with light and her eyes were radiating light as well. It was as bright as the sun! I…I thought that-"

"I'm not possessed Leliana. Hah. Ok, I got some explaining to do. Have you guys noticed that I haven't been normal since I came back to life in Soldier's Peak?"

"You can't touch mages is what I know."

"Well, there's more to that. Morrigan and I have been meeting in the fade. She thinks that the spirit gave me its power to use. She says that I might be able to control it. It's what we've been working on. When I was in the fade…there was a demon that looked like Wynne. I called on the power to protect me, but it is extremely hard to control. Actually, this would be the first time that it manifested in the real world."

"So a demon was about to attack you, and you protected yourself with this power? Are you sure you're not a mage?" Eren asked.

"Does it look like I can command the elements? That's a no."

"Alright, you have better have woken me up for a good reason." Talen groaned, cracking his neck.

"Nia threw up blood." Eren said. Talen's eyebrows shot up and he did a once over on me. After I explained to him what had happened, he just said that was probably why blood was mixed into my expelled food.

"So, you were able to control it for a second that time huh? It looks like we're making progress." Talen said, yawning. There were deep circles under his eyes as well.

"Did you and Eren get any sleep last night?"

"Not much. Morrigan is still pretty weak. I had Eren make her take a small potion throughout the night. Alistair took first watch, but Eren didn't want to sleep at all. I did all I could since Wynne was still pretty low on mana from that last fight. Morrigan should be up and about in a bit."

"Well, that was, is that blood?" Alistair said.

Day 16 continued

We made our way through the path on the Ortan Thaig. So far we haven't encountered anything, and we found a water stream. We had to thank Oghren for that. He was able to track Branka's signs and found it. We got water and, with it, hopefully a way to the Ortan Thaig. I was also stoked that we found a natural hot spring on the way. Oh and Morrigan was all healed up.

"Why are we all here together?" Morrigan asked, dipping into the spring. Wynne had raised the earth slightly so that we would have some privacy. Of course that didn't stop Oghren from trying to sneak a peek. After Wynne froze his bread, he decided to leave us be.

"Talen asked us to make sure you don't faint. You lost a lot of a blood and this hot bath would probably be bad for your health." I explained, washing off the grime from the past couple of days. Morrigan scoffed but accepted the soap from Wynne.

"Are you alright yourself Nia?" Leliana asked.

"Yeah don't worry. The spirit's power was too much for my body."

"I have heard that you were able to sustain the power for a limited time beyond the fade."

"Yep, and then I threw up blood and had a nosebleed. It's a work in progress. I won't be able to control it overnight."

"The spirit's power?" Wynne said.

"Yep. The spirit that was protecting me gave me its power so now I'm trying to learn to control it."

"I see."

"We will need to make note of this progress once you enter the fade again."

"Eh, I don't really want to. I was almost attacked by a demon the last time I was there."

"But you were able to protect yourself."

"And throw up blood."

"The point of the matter is that you are gaining control."

"Is that really control?"

"We all start off somewhere Nia." Wynne said. I rolled my eyes and continued washing out the grime. Morrigan was the first one out. Leliana was quiet though.

"Leliana, you ok? You've been quiet for a while now."

"Huh? Oh yes, I'm fine."

"Leliana, we both know when a woman says I'm fine, it's not fine." Leliana averted her eyes from me.

"Her transformation frightened you, didn't it?" Leliana looked guiltily at Wynne.

"You're afraid of me? Leliana I would never hurt you."

"I know…I know…but you didn't see what you looked like. Your skin cracked with light pouring out, as well as your mouth and eyes. You…didn't look human…I was worried that…you were possessed."

"Leliana look-" As I reached toward her so she can check I'm fully human, she flinched. I never thought that I would make someone flinch in fear. She realized her mistake in a second, but I was already hurt.

"N-Nia, I-"

"I'm getting out. My skin is turning pruny anyway." I got out and went into a little cave to dry off with a small towel. I put on my padding and armor. We didn't know when we were going to get attacked so everyone was supposed to wear it, even when we sleep. It was a bit uncomfortable really, but you gotta do what you gotta do. This was going to be an awkward trip now that I know Leliana is scared of me.

"How are you feeling?" Eren asked. I shrugged my shoulders and sat down next to him.

"Did something happen?" I looked around. I didn't really want anyway to really know. I motioned him to come closer and whispered it to him.

"Leliana is afraid of me now."

"Oh."

"Yeah."

"Come on ladies! We still got daylight ahead of us!" Derek shouted. I'll end things here since I know that we're just going to continue walking.

* * *

**Merry Xmas! This is my gift to you guys and Happy Holidays! Tension in the group? No bueno. So after this chapter I won't update until Jan 6. The reason is so I can catch up on chapters and also give myself a rest since I've been updating every 2-3 days. And I also want to play my games since I haven't touched them...**

**shinedown: **_Not going to happen lol_  
**KrystylSky: **_If that happened then all my planning up to inquisition will go to waste!  
_**Biorr the Old: **_Yeah you really get to see through the facade in Awakening.  
_**ZA: **_I love that rhyme! That was so awesome!  
_**emelian65: **_No todo los demas de Origins no estan vivos. Solo Brasca, Cousland, y Surana que estan en el grupo. Y, como te dije, ya tengo todos los relaciones en mi mente. No se si te van a gustar, pero cuando estuvi imaginando la estoria, they felt right. Espero que no paras de leer por eso, no quiero perderte! :(_

**Thank you to efdfd, Guest, and EG for the reviews!**

**You know what would be a great gift for today? Some reviews! :D**


	28. Crunchy Spider Leg Surprise

Day 18

We reached the Ortan Thaig. There wasn't as much light in here. There hasn't been anyone maintaining the Thaig here so the lava rivers, that were supposed to light the caves, were missing lava. The good thing was it wasn't cold. It was slightly warm. There was a slight stench in the air. It was probably the darkspawn taint in the walls.

"By the tits of my Ancestors, I never thought I'd see this place in the flesh."

"Do you see any sign of Branka?" Eren asked.

"Yep. You see those cracks in the walls? She would always take a few samples to see the composition of the stone. Unfortunately, there aren't any sentries out. That means that she's not here."

"But we can see traces. Time to go exploring again." Talen shrugged. We kept on walking and my heart stopped in my chest. Darkspawn corpses which didn't frighten me. It was the spider corpses right next to it that really got under my skin.

"Uh oh. Eren, Nia is getting shaky again."

"I-I'm not!"

"We all know of your fear of spiders, dear."

"Nia, they are just spiders-"

"They are freaking large ass spiders! One of their, ugh, legs is as big as my freaking arm!"

"Calm down Nia, breathe."

"But-!"

"I have a solution, if you would indulge me." Morrigan said. Eren shrugged his shoulders.

"And what's that if I may ask?" Alistair said, glaring at her.

"Hypnosis of course."

"Wait, what?"

"Tis not a true form of magic, but it might be what you need in order to face this fear of yours."

"Uh, I'm not really comfortable-"

"Just get on with it! The more sodding time we waste here, the less time we have for finding Branka!" Everyone looked at me to make my decision.

"It is alright mi niña, if something happens, you can easily rest in my arms."

"No. Urgh, fine! Fine! Do it."

"Good, now, sit down and relax…"

-/-

I truthfully don't remember what Morrigan did to me. I know that I accidentally tried to punch her, which Alistair took. He has a bruise on his chin now. Sorry Alistair. All I do know, is that I'm not afraid of spiders anymore! We met up with six giant spiders and I was able to fight them head on! This was awesome! I was able to crush their abdomens and see their insect blood on the ground. I think I actually scared the group since I was laughing maniacally.

"I think we broke her." Derek said.

"No. She is just enjoying herself." Morrigan said.

"In a very peculiar way." Sten said.

We walked deeper into the cave. The normal path was blocked with stone so of course we went into the side passages. After the giant spiders, we found them battling with darkspawn.

"Better them than us." Derek said. We waited until the 'victor' emerged so that we didn't have to fight them all. Turned out it was the ogre. After it had smashed and crushed the spiders into small splotches on the ground, it came after us. We made sure to keep Morrigan well out of the fighting. Her body was weak from losing the blood in her battle with the other Ogre. Morrigan was able to freeze it in place and the GWs just went to town on it.

It wasn't the only one though.

"There are more darkspawn up ahead." Alistair said. There were also more spiders as well. We did the same tactic and waited for the victor. This time the spiders won. They charged at us. The DOS team rushed them with their two handed weapons. MTW went with their spells. Those that separated from the group were hunted down by Zevran, Alfred, and I. Alistair and Eren made the line between them and the MTW group. All in all, very good tactics.

We killed the party of spiders and headed on our way.

"Damn these spiders and webs!" Oghren yelled, getting caught as we saw more spiders. Then something strange happened. Talen did one of his famous fire spells, but it almost exploded and took out most of the spiders we were fighting

"What was that!?" Alistair said. He was nearly scorched. Derek went to investigate and took a good whiff.

"Ah! Looks like there's a natural gas vein in the walls."

"Is that what that smells was?" Alistair said.

"It means we should be very careful with bas seerabas fire spells."

"Yep. We don't want the ceiling to cave in." Oghren said.

"Talen, only ice spells from now on."

"But I'm not good with those!"

"Then shapeshift." Talen sulked. It was funny to still see him do that. He is the youngest of our group. As we continued on we found spirits and golems! These things were huge! I could probably only reach waist high if I stood next to them.

"Be careful! These spirits cannot be harmed by normal means!" Morrigan shouted. Even our enchanted weapons did little toward them. The golem was able to get hurt by Derek's hammer and Oghren's axe, but normal weapons didn't slow it down. The spirits were giving us trouble as they were able to hit us but not us to them. The MTW team had to really get into their mana pool in order to kill them or make them vanish.

"Is the veil thin here?" Leliana asked.

"Well there are giant spiders."

"The thaig must have fallen long ago to darkspawn. Death emanates from here, but I don't think it's stretched too thinly. Either way, we must be careful." Wynne explained.

I was looking in awe at all the houses that we were passing in the Thaig. Of course we couldn't open any of the doors. Most of the doors were stuck in their places after so many years. Some houses were also caved in. If there was anything in there, it was probably destroyed. Then I heard a shout.

"There's someone out there!" Oghren shouted. It was Ruck. After telling us we can't go near his things, we got ambushed by spiders.

"Sodding things needs to be taught a lesson!" Derek shouted.

"Hey watch where you're swinging that thing!" Talen said. We were all just a circle of bodies surrounded by spiders. Then Leliana got separated with two spiders aiming right for her.

"Leliana out of the way!" Talen did a small cone of ice which froze them. I came in and shattered both of them.

"Alistair!" He was being overwhelmed by a spider. Alfred jumped right on top and started to gnaw and maul. Sten did the finishing blow. We were all covered with spider guts and other things I didn't care to mention.

"Ugh, my boots."

"Leliana, you ok?" I asked. She flinched. I sighed in defeat.

"I'm ok."

"They didn't get you with their fangs right?" Talen asked. I just left Talen to take care of her. There wasn't anything I could do anymore.

"Status." Eren said.

"I am well." Sten said.

"Covered in guts, but ok." Alistair said.

"Nothing to report boss."

"Me and Leliana are ok too."

"I'm fine." Alfred barked right next to me.

"Now that we are all well, what was the man that fled from us?" Morrigan asked.

"Probably an unlucky sod that got punished to the Deep Roads." Oghren said. "We shouldn't worry about it. We have to keep moving." I looked to where the cave where Ruck was. I was worried about him. Wynne gave me a glance as well.

"Nia, let's go. We can't waste any more time here than we already have." Eren said.

"But we could help him."

"I don't think so. He's been feeding off darkspawn corpses. Look here." Alistair said. Bones that carried the taint were all over the place with teeth marks on them. "If anything, he's close to becoming a ghoul. The only thing we could do now is give him mercy." I felt my stomach clench and looked back at the cave.

"Come on you sods! Stop having a tea party and get on with it!" Oghren shouted. I had to ignore the feeling I had for Ruck. It's true. Even if I did tell Ruck that his mother was looking for him, he would rather stay here. There was nothing I could do. Still…

"Nia!" I ran toward the cave and came face to face with Ruck.

"No! You no come here! You no plunder my riches!" I took a deep breath and made my physical language drop from intimidation, to calming. I let go of the tension I had in my shoulders and made sure that Ruck saw both of my empty hands.

"I'm not here to steal anything. I won't touch any of your treasure." I said calmly, slowly, and softly.

"You're not here to steal Ruck's treasure?"

"No. If you want, I could always trade you for it. Like these shiny coins that I have." I jingled the bag of coins so he could see and hear it.

"Oh, Ruck not mind that."

"You sodding girl! What are you…" Oghren turned quiet as he looked around the cave. I could see the gears turning in his head. This was Branka's old camp. There were marks of fire on the ground with all the cots in one place. I could only assume that was where Ruck slept.

"Ruck, do you know of anyone that was down here? Maybe a woman named Branka?"

"No, nothing here. Nothing other than creatures that, that bite and crunch your bones. No woman, only pretty lady." I sighed.

"Hey, tell him if he wouldn't mind me looking around for a bit."

"Ruck, this is my friend Oghren. Can he look around your camp? He won't take anything and, if we want to, I'll trade you those shiny coins that I told you about."

"Yes, beard friend of pretty lady can look."

"Thank you Ruck." I saw Eren out of the corner of my eye. I shook my head. I didn't want Ruck to become violent with anyone else. Oghren didn't find much. Just signs that this was where Branka used to be.

"Now I know Branka isn't here. She would let someone like that use her camp like a festering nest." I heard someone come through again. This time it was Wynne.

"Excuse me, may I speak with him for a moment?"

"Go ahead Wynne." She talked to him about his mother. He vehemently denied her to spread the information that he was alive. Wynne agreed that it would be better for his mother to know that he was dead instead. So we left the cave and we left Ruck to whatever fate he would succumb to.

After encountering some more spirits, we found an underground lake and finally took an impromptu break. We washed off the spider guts as much as we could. I tried getting down everything that I could remember. I know that once we cross that bridge, we'd be heading into spider queen territory. Hopefully everyone would be about to get out all right.

Day 18 Continued.

We stopped right at the sight where Branka was last camped. It's been a doozy since I last wrote.

Once we washed off our armor, we continued on. The spiders that we saw all started to flee at first glance. All of us just looked at each other, wondering what was going on.

"This poses a problem." Morrigan said.

"What do you mean?" Eren asked.

"If I am to assume correctly, these spiders are following orders."

"Orders? I thought these beasts have no mind of their own." Derek said.

"They have a group mentality when they are of 5 or 6 members, but the way these are acting, they are being controlled by a queen."

"A queen spider? So what, all the ones we've been fighting are its workers?" Alistair asked.

"Twould appear so. I believe we are heading into the main nest. It will be closely guarded by many. Not only that, these spiders also carry the darkspawn taint."

"Corrupted spiders? This doesn't bode well." Wynne said.

"Animals that carry the taint can also spread it to other creatures." Alistair said.

"Then what is the plan?" Sten asked.

"We're only 4 Grey Wardens. We can't all be at the front making sure these spiders don't touch the rest. If we get swarmed by them, we're dead." Talen said.

"Not to mention there are also darkspawn thrown in with them." Eren said.

"Either way, it seems we are doomed no?"

"Thank you for that vote of confidence Zevran." Talen said sarcastically.

"There must be something we can do in order to damage all of them."

"I know of an earthquake spell, but that would be too risky in these caves."

"I know the inferno, but I don't want to blow everyone up."

"And the blizzard would only slow them down for a time, for twould freeze all of us." I got to thinking. We do have natural gas here. Gas moves in veins.

"What if…we can gather all the spiders near a gas vein? That way we can just roast all of them in one go." I suggested.

"That would be a fine plan, but who would be the unlucky sod that brings them all together? Not to mention having the nose to sniff out the gas." We all turned to Alfred. He just gave a scary whine.

"We can't let him go alone! He'll die." Eren said.

"Then someone else needs to go with the dog." Oghren said.

"One that runs fast." Derek said, stroking his beard.

"And another to pull them out of the way once they find the vein." Leliana, Zevran, and I were all singled out.

"You are kidding me!"

"You really think that any one of us can out run los arañas?"

"Please tell me you're joking."

"Zevran can sneak as well as Leliana. We've seen how you ran away with some spiders as well Nia."

"Well, we all know where this is going!" Alistair said. The lot game. Two of us are going to have to join Alfred in trying to find a gas vein near the nest and draw all the spiders toward it. Derek held up the three sticks. Two were burnt, one wasn't.

"Why did I have to open my mouth…?" I mumbled.

"You could have easily used it to-"

"Not helping Zevran." Leliana said.

"Let's get them all at once. On 3." I said.

"One."

"Dos…"

"Three!"

I squeaked in horror. I got the burnt one as did Zevran. Leliana was the one that lucked out.

"Frick."

"Braska."

"Oh thank the Maker." Leliana gave out a sigh of relief.

"Well Zevran. At least when I die, I'll have you."

"Do not be so pessimistic mi niña, it makes your beautiful face wrinkle."

"Well, let's keep following them I supposed." Alistair said. We kept on following the spiders. My stomach filled with dread. I felt like throwing up. Even though I wasn't afraid of spiders, I didn't want to get burned alive from wanting to kill them. As we followed the retreating spiders, we came upon a bridge.

"Alfred. It's your time to help." Eren said. Alfred whined again. "There are two darkspawn ahead. We'll keep them away from you. Try to draw the spiders as well as you can and avoid getting bit by them. Alfred, once you found a gas vein, howl." Alfred barked. "Good boy. Are you ready?"

"Hell no."

"Doesn't matter missy, now get out there!" Derek said, slapping my back. Zevran and I did a quick glance at each other. I felt Alfred's noise in my hand.

"Go!"

We ran like getting out of dodge. I saw a darkspawn and a couple of corrupted spiders right behind me. Alistair and Eren already got their attention. I saw the next emissary in front of me controlling a few corrupted spiders. Then the queen came out. Spiders started to drop everywhere, following me or Zevran. Then I heard a howl. Alfred was right next to a small cavern in the wall. That must have been where the gas was leaking. We only had one shot at this.

"Come on you ugly pieces of shit!" I started throwing rocks to get their attention, trying to ease my way where Alfred was. He was also nipping at their heels. The queen had its eyes on Zevran, and he was running like a maniac over to us.

"Zevran over here!"

He took a jump and came to where we were. Alfred howled again to alert the group. I saw Talen's blonde locks up on the hill. Alfred was already evading the spiders to get to his side. I took out my daggers and started to punch my way out. Zevran had already found one. I was the only one keeping the spiders there.

"Nia get out of there!"

"I'm freaking trying!"

That's when one spider pushed me up against the cavern wall and started to maul my armor apart, or at least tried to. Thank you Mikhael for making this! We didn't have enough time. More spiders were dropping and if we didn't set these ones on fire, we would be overwhelmed.

"Do it Talen!"

"But Nia-!"

"Just shut up and do it!"

I saw his staff waving in the air, the fire collecting at his point. There was earth moving to cover the group. Most likely by Wynne. I saw a blur right in my peripheral vision. Arrows started to strike at the spiders. I also saw Zevran cut one down right next to me.

"Nia!" He grabbed my arm and yanked me out of the bodies of spiders.

"Everybody get down!" Zevran quickly stuffed me into a small hole in the wall holding me away from the opening, before Talen finally release the inferno. The fire spread extremely quick throughout the cavern and caught all the spiders. I heard their squeals of pain. Zevran hugged me closer to him. I had my eyes shut. I felt the fire at the opening of our little cave. It was deafening as well. Then utter silence. I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding. Zevran released his hold on me. His back was slightly scorched but that was easily remedied with a potion. I started to laugh out of pure relief and he joined me.

"Nia! Zevran!" We got out of the hole. I was covered in dust and my armor was dented in many places, but I was alive. Leliana was the first to spot us. I saw the group come out of a earth dome. Leliana surprised me by hugging me very close.

"Oh thank Andraste! Are you hurt? Did you get bit?"

"No, I'm fine. Zevran here pulled me out of the scuffle. I saw that you distracted them long enough with your arrows."

"O-Oh well-"

"Thank you Leliana."

"You are welcome."

"And what of me my precious niña?"

"Oh you're calling me niña again? What about saying my name hm?"

"Well that was in the heat of battle. If you want I can say it again in a heat of passion." I just rolled my eyes and gave him a kiss on the cheek.

"That's for saving me. Thank you Zevran." I felt a warm body colliding with me, taking me to the ground. Alfred was giving me his slobbery kisses and Eren had to almost pry him off me.

"Nia, you're not hurt?"

"No, I'm good. Just the armor needs a little fixing, woah!" Eren hugged me close to him as well.

"Ok enough with the sap, get over here. We found a journal of Branka's." Derek said, stopping our little moment. Zevran helped me up and gave me a wink. I just shook my head of his antics. I got some more hugs from Wynne and Alistair. Morrigan and Talen just gave me praise.

"I do not know whether to congratulate you on your courage or on your stupidity. But your valor in battle was firmly tested this day and you have won." Sten said.

"Um, thank you?"

"Come on you nuglets! This journal isn't going to read itself!" Oghren shouted. The GWs joined him in going through the journal. I sat down and started to write.

"May I sit with you?" Leliana asked.

"Sure, it's a free country." She had a small break loaf in her hand and broke it in two, offering me one piece. "You should probably save that for later you know."

"I just want to say, I am sorry for treating you like something to be feared. I know what I saw and, although it was frightening, I will admit that, that is not you. My behavior was inexcusable and-"

"Leliana, it's ok. It just hurt that you thought that I was just going to hurt you for no absolute reason. I don't even know how to control this power, let alone use it to hurt others. I'm not a monster Leliana, and I promise that I will never hurt you."

"I know, I know. I am sorry if you thought that I thought of you that way. You are a courageous and beautiful woman, who has shown her bravery time and time again. I should have known that you would not use that power with bad intentions."

"Of course not Leliana. I would use my power to protect the people I care about. Don't forget that you're one of them ok?" Leliana nodded and rested her head on my shoulder. I rubbed my head with hers and kept on writing.

"Alright, rest up everyone. We got our next destination. The Deep Trenches. I'm not going to lie, that is the heart of the darkspawn horde. Countless nest there and I can't express enough not to get yourself tainted. It's going to take a while to get there according to Branka's maps. Once everyone has caught their breath, we'll renew our travels." Derek explained.

"The Dead Trenches…this mission will has become more difficult than what we thought." Leliana said.

"You got that right."

* * *

**I loved my break bytheway. Regular updating will continue every 3 days. Happy Dia de los Reyes! :D anyone got the baby from the rosca? I would love some tamales.**

**Shout out to yoyotenshi, SteadfastTinSoldier, manosad, prue162, and OnlineArmadillo for favoriting/following this story!**

**shinedown: **_Thanks for the cookie! I can't want to see your progression on your two stories :3 I see you have taken a liking to Eren_ lol  
**emelian65: **_Sabias que me diste un idea para Zevran y con quien el va estar? Yo pienso que te va a gustar :3 Va ser una sorpresa para ti.  
_**KrystylSky: **_As you can see, Leliana gets over_ it.  
**Biorr the Old: **_I was doing something meaninful on New Year's like sleeping lol it's tough being a mom.  
_**yoyotenshi: **_I'm glad you did :3  
_**ZA: **_I got pajamas! :D  
_**chaosrin: **_If you woke up to a person with crackling skin that had light pouring out of it and their mouth and eyes, wouldn't you be scared? Not only that, Leliana saw how Uldred changed people into abominations with light glowing as well. I would think it would be semi_ traumatizing.  
**EG: **_Thank you for the review! And I don't got school, i have work..._

**I hope that your christmas and new years were safe, fun, and happy! :D 12000 views! This couldn't be done without you guys!**


	29. Deep Roads Time part 2!

Day 20

Oghren is pretty much our lead now. After copying the maps from Branka's journal, he kept searching for her marks on the stone. It was like following bread crumbs almost. Even then, it was going to take a while to get to the Dead Trenches. From what the markers told us, it would take us a good week or more to get there. At this point, I'm not even sure how much time we've been down here. At least in the Diamond Quarter I was able to keep track of the days.

Derek made sure we were hauling ass. Without the wagon, it was all walking/jogging. Even though Derek and Oghren were dwarves, they could easily outrun me. Finally Eren convinced them that running us ragged would be bad if we were too tired to fight.

My feet are killing me.

"At this point I'm going to need new padding for my boots." I said.

"You aren't the only the only one." Leliana said.

"At least be thankful that we're not meeting a lot of darkspawn in the roads." Alistair said. I"ll have to admit that was the only saving grace on this mission. The bad thing about it was that all the darkspawn we weren't meeting here, were up on the surface.

"I do not understand. The Deep Roads are the home for darkspawn. Why are we not meeting more?" Sten asked.

"They come out en masse during a Blight. Instead of staying down here, they dig upwards, led by the Archdemon." Eren explained. "The Darkspawn were already gathering in a massive horde in Ostagar by the time we fled to Lothering. I'm surprised that they haven't run over the country over by now."

"Winter is keeping them in check. Duncan told me that they are sensitive to the cold." Derek said.

"So by the end of winter, they're going to completely destroy Ferelden?" Talen asked.

"Most likely." Derek said.

"So that gives us about 4 more months to get all our allies and convince the nobles to fight the darkspawn instead of each other? No pressure guys." I said.

"Well if it's a long winter like last year, we might have a bit more time on our hands." Eren said.

"Which is why we need to get to Branka as soon as possible. The sooner we can get the dwarves on our back, the better." Derek said. I began to hum under my breath. I couldn't take my ocarina this time since the noise would probably attract darkspawn or other animals.

"Singing again mi niña?"

"Humming. I can't really sing since Derek is not allowing me to."

"We can't have monsters chasing after us with your singing."

"But I'm so bored! All we're doing is walking."

"I'm starting to wonder how your husband handled you." Derek mumbled. I started to snicker.

"You have your mind in the gutter again, don't you?" Leliana said.

"Sorry, but it makes life more fun. Anyway, I was always doing something back home. There was always something to preoccupy me. I can't help it. I get bored easily."

"Quit your yammering. The only thing you should be focused on, is-"

"Getting to Branka, I get it."

"Don't you sass me girl."

"This girl has a name. It's Nia."

"Whatever you say girly." I stuck my tongue at Oghren when he turned around.

"Children behave." Morrigan said.

"How are you feeling Morrigan?" I asked.

"There is no need to concern yourself about my well-being."

"Geez, I'm just asking."

"How about you recite poetry?" Zevran said.

"Poetry? Really?"

"Really there is nothing else to do besides playing I spy." Alistair said. I huffed.

"If it would pass the time I guess."

"Good, I am first. Her beautiful skin was velvet to my touch/ Her lips as succulent as the ripest fruit/ The feeling in my lower body becoming too much/ As her body came closer-"

"Zevran, really? I know it's probably been a while since you had it, but can we at least keep the poetry to something less perverted?"

"Ah, your loss mi niña. Your turn."

"There are many things to fear/ But know that I am always at your side/ As the time flies year after year/ You will be my joy and my pride."

"The sky twinkles with the light of stars/ The twins moons in their forever dance/ This beautiful world is eternally ours/ Even for a small fleeting glance."

"Not bad Leliana. Thinking about someone?" I gave her a small playful nudge. Leliana giggled.

"You may think what you like. You are thinking of your children aren't you?"

"Yep. And close your mouth Zevran, we all know what you're thinking about."

Day 23

We should be getting close to the Deep Trenches now. The Deep Roads became harder to travel. Well, if you can even call them Roads now. It was more like a cave system if anything.

"The walls are becoming less noticeable now." Oghren said.

"You are still able to follow the path, are you not?" Sten asked.

"Of course I am! Branka's my wife! I can follow her to here all the way to Kal' Sharok if need be."

"Aww, you still love her don't you?" Leliana said.

"I still care for her! I'm the only one in the sodding city that still does! No one cares that she's been missing for 2 sodding years!"

"Oghren, you're drunk aren't you?" I said.

"Of course I am! Can you see me making this trip without a drink?"

"Where is he getting all this liquor anyway?" Alistair mumbled.

"Do you really want to know?" Morrigan said.

"Forget I asked."

-/-

We rested for a good second. Everyone was really tired by this point. We only stopped for the occasional bathroom break. Our supplies are getting low as well. I was able to cook up some of the deepstalkers that we killed on the way. They tasted very gamy and disgusting, but they were the only thing that was edible in the Deep Roads.

"We're going to have to be careful hunting these down. I can tell from the walls that the corruption is starting to spread." Eren said.

"Would explain the taste…" Oghren said. I was writing as usual with Alfred curled up at my side. Talen was looking over Wynne. She had sprained her ankle when her foot stepped on a portion of weak road. It went through and her ankle was caught.

"You never stop writing don't you girly?"

"My name is Nia, Oghren."

"What you writing in there?"

"My sanity."

"Your what?"

"She's from out of town I guess you can say. She writes in it to make sure she doesn't go crazy." Alistair said.

"Thanks for summing that up Alistair."

"I do my best."

"Out of town huh? What are you an Antivan?"

"Not exactly."

"Definitely not an Orlesian…Rivain!"

"Nope."

"Nevarran? The Free Marches? The Anderfels! I thought your eyes looked weird."

"No to all three."

"Then where are you sodding from?"

"Beyond the fade. I'm not from this world." Oghren looked at me for a good second before laughing his ass off.

"Good one girly! Hey pass me some of that cheese kid!"

"But…this is my ration…" I rolled my eyes and scratched Alfred behind the ears. He gave me a happy groan. One by one, all of us started to go into our tents. Eren stayed by the fire. I wasn't that tired though so I stayed up with him.

"I can't wait until we get this over with. I'm starting to miss the sky."

"You and me both. It's gonna be such a pain once we get outside. It's full on winter now. Snowy and cold."

"You can always come into my tent to get warm."

"Oh my gosh, have you been listening to Zevran again?" Eren chuckled.

"Even if you did come in there, I wouldn't do anything if you didn't want to."

"Eren…"

"I know. I know, but you really don't miss it?" I got up and sat next to him instead.

"Truthfully, I really do." I whispered and he chuckled silently.

"I don't see why you don't take up Zevran's offer. It seems that you like him."

"Zevran is good to look at but not to touch. After being with the same person for almost 5 years makes you yearn for that emotional side when doing it. I can't just get a one night stand or something."

"So you would do it out of love instead of personal satisfaction?"

"Basically. You're the opposite though. I'm surprised you haven't jumped on Leliana or Morrigan. Well technically you already did with Morrigan."

"We didn't do anything that one time. All we did was…touch."

"And you haven't done anything else? Wow Eren, you sure you ok? You were a ladies man back in Highever."

"That was in the past. If you haven't noticed, we have been trying to save the country. There really isn't any time for romance or personal pleasure."

"Zevran hasn't quite made that distinction yet." Eren chuckled.

"That is true. I don't know. I guess…well my feelings for you are still there. I still see you every day. It will be hard trying not to be in love with you." I pinched his cheek. "Ow!"

"I love you too Eren, but not in that way. If you need me to remind you of that constantly, you can only ask." He just gave me a small smile and rubbed where I pinched him.

"No. I think the more I say it, the more I can come to terms that you are unattainable. Eventually I will find someone for me. Whether it will be soon or not is the question. You better get some sleep. You know how Derek and Oghren are running us hard."

"Oh yeah. Alright then." Eren grabbed my hand and kissed it.

"Good Night Nia."

"Night Eren."

Wow, long entry. Time to go to sleep.

Day 26

I was in the fade again. I haven't been here since the incident with the demon. I was more wary than last time. The floating island I was on didn't seem that different from last time. I didn't want to start walking, especially now that I knew that a demon has me in its sights. I didn't know what to do with myself during this time. So I decided to just sit down and meditate. If I was going to do anything productive, I might as well try to get a handle on this power.

I took in a deep breath and let it out. I closed my eyes and focused on the power in my stomach. The best I could describe it was a giant ball. Not as big as a bowling ball but much smaller and denser. It felt hot the moment I felt it spread in my body. I opened my eyes, gasped, and stood up from the shock. That's when I saw it. When Leliana and Talen describe my skin cracking with light, they weren't joking.

It was as if my skin was concrete with light going through the cracks. They ran all over my skin down to my fingertips. Then it ebbed away. I could only touch that ball of power for an instant before it became overwhelming.

I sat down and tried again. Deep breaths and concentration. I imagined my hand touching that power. Only a second with my finger touching it and a spark of power made my skin extremely hot. I opened my eyes again, but it was full of light. My eyes were probably shining again.

"It seems to me that you have improved." I gasped and felt that power grow before it became unbearable again. I knew that voice. It was Morrigan. I hunched on the ground. The power was about to burst again. "Listen to my voice. Take deep breaths. One after the other. Concentrate on the power you have now. Control it. Do not let it control you."

My body was under excruciating pain. I felt needles poking out of every single pore. My eyes threatening to spill out as soon as I opened my eyelids. My bones felt like fire. It was hard but I did simple steps. Breath. One in, two out. In and out. That was all I could think about. Then I slowly felt it ebb away like last time. I gasped for breath and soon the fade went away.

I woke up sweating and my muscles cramping. My eyelids felt heavy. The only thing about going into the fade that I didn't like, was that I feel like I stayed up all night. Oh man, finally finished writing all of this down. Leliana was still sleeping and I felt so tired. Well, let's get some shut eye.

-/-

We are nearing the Dead Trenches. The walls are coated with this sticky black stuff. The taint corrupts the land almost like radioactivity. It's better if you don't get any on your face or touch it with your bare hands.

"We should be nearing a big canyon. From that bridge on, is the Dead Trenches." Oghren said.

"Need I remind everyone that getting darkspawn blood on you is bad? No? Good!" Alistair said.

I'll end this here. Derek and Oghren are not letting us stop for nothing.

Day 27

So we are in the Dead Trenches. Also Morrigan actually congratulated me on controlling the power that I had, somewhat. Anyway we're at the canyon where that whole cut scene with the Archdemon came, except we are resting before we cross the bridge.

We saw the armies marching down in the canyon. The Archdemon flew by us and roared which caused all the GWs to faint.

"Do you think they'll wake up anytime soon?" Leliana asked me.

"I'm not sure. Having the Archdemon nearby probably caused them to hear something in their thoughts. Give them a minute."

"Why don't we just crush all the darkspawn down there with rocks? Wynne you can do your little earth trick can't you?" Oghren asked.

"If I did summon an earthquake, we would also suffer the consequences of having boulders crush us to death. You wouldn't want that would you?" Oghren grunted.

"The saarebas is awakening."

I looked over and, sure enough, Talen was the first one waking up. He groaned and coughed. Leliana went by his side. Talen hunched over, grabbing his stomach.

Now that he was awake, I will end things here. I hope we can get through the Deep Trenches without any incident.

* * *

**The next few chapters are probably some of my favorite ones. I'm still trying to catch up on my back up chapters...two more to go!**

**Shout out to Lucy's Echo and Creative Lunatic for favoriting and following this story! :D**

**EG: **_Of course I will, this is my favorite story to write_ :3  
**ZA: **_I think you're the only one religiously sticking to that pairing lol  
_**shinedown: **_Yummy! Delicious cyber marshmallow! I know, I know, Eren._ lol  
**Spawnhunter: **_I can't reveal anything about Shale because of plot things. Sorry no spoilers x3_

**We're finally at the Dead Trenches! You wanna read how we beat that broodmother in the face? Review! :D**


	30. The Dead Trenches

Day 27 (?)

Here I am again, writing in this journal. It…it has been a long day. Nia, you're next to me barely alive, again. And again you had protected me to the best of your ability.

Us four Grey Wardens fainted when we saw the Archdemon. I had a vision and heard a song. I was surrounded by darkspawn. They were calling out to me and the rest of us Grey Wardens. They told us to join them, to serve them, to kill for them, and to eat for them.

I remember a Genlock coming up to me and offering me flesh. This flesh was the flesh of my enemies. They told me to follow them, to come with them, to embrace the darkness.

And then I awoke.

"Are you ok?" Nia asked. I groaned. The nightmares were always bad and frightening but this one was unnerving. I saw Talen in the corner of my eye. He had grown pale. Derek's lines were harder than usual. Alistair's good mood gone.

"Did…did you…?" Talen started. Leliana was at his side.

"I didn't eat it." Derek said gruffly.

"Oh I'm going to be sick." Alistair said, grabbing his stomach.

"What are you 4 talking about?" Morrigan asked.

"The Archdemon gave you a nightmare, didn't it?" Nia said. I nodded and so did the rest.

"Naptime is over, time to keep marching." Oghren said. Nia helped me up. I saw Leliana giving soft spoken words to Talen. He, out of all of us, was the most frightened by the nightmare. We headed deeper into the cavern and that was when we felt it again. The call. The darkspawn were coming near us.

"By the stone! It's the Legion!" Oghren had gasped. There were a team of 5 dwarfs. They all had matching armor but there was one who did not have a helmet on. He had a rough shield and ax and were keeping the darkspawn at bay. We all grabbed our weapons and headed out. There were only five up front but my senses were telling me of a massive horde just across the bridge.

The 4 of us scattered to try to keep the darkspawn from crossing along-side my hound. The bridge wasn't that wide but I wasn't going to let them pass. I used my shield with Alistair to form a blockade. Even with Derek they still got through. I didn't have the luxury to look back. I trusted Talen to make sure that no darkspawn would taint any one.

Slowly we fought across the bridge. I knew what would be waiting for us on the other side. I felt the pull and I closed my eyes in an instant. I saw them clearly in my mind. Their dark blood calling to me. 10 Genlock archers, 2 ogres, 20 hurlocks with Alphas in their group. It will be a close battle if we weren't careful.

We broke through with the Legion right behind us. That was when the Hurlocks rushed us. Alistair and I were in the middle of the battle. I saw Sten and Derek trying to come to our aid. Talen was behind us casting spell after spell with Wynne and Morrigan. It was such a mess of bodies. It was too much. When we were finally breaking through, I saw an Alpha separate from the pack, following Nia.

But I couldn't keep my eyes on her. I had to focus on staying alive. I couldn't see my companions. I was getting tired. I wasn't striking down the darkspawn fast enough. My companions started to fall one by one. Then I felt the two ogres stomps coming ever closer. The mess of bodies parted and I was face to face with one. I felt a push from behind and the ogre grabbed me.

It wasn't crushing me. Instead, it lifted me from the ground to face it.

"EREN!" I heard Nia scream. I was worried that I was about to meet the Maker. Then a shining light came and blinded the ogre. I heard an otherworldly scream. In one moment I was hanging in the air, then I was falling, still in the arm of the ogre. The ogre was cut into pieces. I fell hard and as my eyes searched for anyone, they landed on Nia.

It was as if the sun was pouring out of her in cracks. What was frightening was the light shining out of her eyes and mouth. She held a grand greatsword in one hand as she slaughtered the darkspawn that was left. The arrows burned before reached her as she killed the genlocks waiting against the massive doors. The ogre charge her and she cut it in two. There was nothing left but carnage. Nia gave out another roared and faced us.

Talen had run toward me and placed his hand on my shoulder. He looked at me with fearful eyes. I saw Nia flinched. The greatsword fell from her hand. The light faded from her being. She looked normal, until blood started to pour from everywhere. Her eyes, mouth, nose, ears, dear Maker it just wouldn't stop.

"Alistair catch her!" Talen shouted but it was too late. Her body was so close to that dreaded blood. Then Talen used his skill and brought the blood to his beck and call. The ichor of darkspawn blood gathered in his hands as Nia fell to the ground.

Then I saw Wynne's body glow with a blue mist. She knelt by Nia's body and placed her hands on her chest. I saw the light crackle from her body again but it melded with Wynne's energy.

"Talen what was that?!" Alistair shouted.

"Less talking, more helping! Get Wynne a lyrium potion! She won't be able to keep that magic up for long!" Talen said, commanding more and more of the tainted blood away from the ground. Derek was already up and was dragging the bodies into the canyon. Morrigan had come up to her side, a lyrium potion in her hand.

"She is still bleeding!" Morrigan said. Talen growled and threw more blood out into the canyon. He ran up to Nia. He put his hand on her and stopped the blood flow.

"Blood magic…?" Wynne mumbled.

"Don't worry, I'm only stopping the blood. Get the bodies out of the way! I cleaned up all the spilled blood the best I can but the taint can still spread!" Talen shouted. I got myself out of my stupor and began to drag the bodies along with Alistair. Even Alfred was dragging them. It was a tense moment. Wynne's magic eventually faded and she fainted. Nia looked horrible. Talen commanded the blood that was still on her body away.

Oghren and Derek were talking to the Legion. I couldn't hear the whispers anymore. We were safe for now.

"Talen what did you do?! How did you do that with the blood!?" Alistair said, shoving Talen to face him. Nia was right by my side.

"How do you think!? I was the only one that drank that damned potion at Soldier's Peak! Something awakened in me when I drank it. Something powerful." Talen said.

"Oh it wasn't enough that you had Flemeth teach you blood magic, you drank the potion!? Didn't we agree that we weren't going to touch the stuff?" Alistair shouted.

"You have no idea! None of you went to that tower after we killed him! I read the notes! I saw what they could do! That potion that you destroyed wasn't the only one! Yes I drank it and it probably saved Nia!" Talen shouted back. Alistair's face had gotten red with anger and Talen's fists were engulfed fire.

"Enough!" Sten shouted. "Your anger does us no good. We are surrounded by the enemy. Our anger must be directed to them, not within our group. If we are not attentive, we will all be struck down." Talen let out a sharp breath and sat by Nia.

"Y-You're right. I apologize Talen."

"Whatever Templar." Talen sneered. Leliana slapped him upside the head. "I'm sorry too Alistair."

Maker, I hope you open your eyes soon Nia.

-/-

I saw that Eren did his job on writing when I couldn't. I can't believe everything that has happened. Right now we're in the place where we find that the Legion of the Dead was a caste. Oghren and Derek are both trying to copy as much information as we can. Everyone is exhausted. We've gotten lucky so far with the darkspawn and no one getting tainted.

Well let me write from where Eren last left off.

I woke up to a really bad back sore. I did my stretch and was able to crack it. I felt a bit woozy, weak, and cold.

"You are awake!" Leliana said.

"Yeah, ugh, what happened?" I rubbed my face and smacked my lips. I felt like I drank dirt.

"You don't remember?"

"The last thing I remember is going all glowing badass and looking at Eren when I killed all the darkspawn and then…nothing." Oh my eyes were killing me.

"You almost died, again." Talen said, sitting against the wall. He had bags under his eyes and was slightly pale. I noticed that everyone else was lying on the stone or propped up again a wall.

"Everyone is resting right now. The legionnaires have already gone back to the point at the bridge. They told us that they can't continue forward unless there is a king to lead them." Leliana said.

"Ok, and what do you mean by that Talen?" I tried sitting up and the whole world spun.

"You nearly bled to death. That 'glowing badass' you talked about? It nearly killed you. Once you shut off that thing you started to bleed from almost every single orifice that you had. I'm surprised you lost all that blood and are still alive." Talen said, sighing and rubbing his face.

"Talen here was instrumental for your life, even if he used…questionable means."

"What do you mean?"

"I used blood magic. I drank some potion back in Soldier's Peak and I can command darkspawn blood. How do you think we haven't gotten all tainted? Anyway, I made sure that none of their blood touched you. Wynne did this weird thing, I don't really know. She was able to heal you for the most part but you kept bleeding. Then I stopped your blood and Wynne did her duty. I don't know what she did, but you really need to thank her once she wakes up." Talen said.

"You know, I don't really care that you used blood magic. It's like what they say, it's a tool that can be used. A tool can't be known to be evil or good. I know that you think blood magic is evil Leliana, but look what it could do. Talen saved me." I explained. Leliana bit her lip. Talen flushed a little bit.

"Thanks…" He mumbled.

"I…am sorry Talen." Leliana said.

"Don't worry about it, really."

"I did not know that you were actively making sure that we were all safe."

"Heh, it's a bit hard but I got used to it after the third horde we came across. Truthfully I still have some of the blood mixture with me."

"From Soldier's Peak? But why?"

"In case any of these guys want it. I read up on the things that it could do. I know, I know a lot of people died for this and not in the best way. It's just, look the way I see it, these people died for this research. We'd be spitting on their graves if we don't at least use it." Talen said.

"Have you been talking to Sten?" I asked.

"It's just the way I see it. I don't expect you guys to-"

"I believe in you Talen. You are a good man. I don't expect you to use these talents for evil." Talen's ears got super red and he looked the other way. Leliana gave him a small smile.

"Ok enough with…whatever this is. Lay down Nia, I have to give you a once over." Talen said, clearing his throat. So I lied down and I felt his magic going over me. "You lost a lot of blood. You should drink a potion to revitalize you and then we'll need to keep going. Leliana, start to wake everyone." Leliana stood up and did her job. Talen passed me an elfroot potion. I gagged at the taste but, after a couple of seconds, I didn't feel as woozy anymore.

"Nia? You're awake!" Eren said, launching me into another one of his bear hugs. Talen face palmed. I hugged him back.

"I'm sorry." I said.

"No, I should apologize. I should better protect myself. This is…this is the second time you saved my life. I can't repay you enough for what you did. When we go back to Orzammar, I will get you anything you want, no matter how high the cost." Eren said, finally letting me go but grabbing my hands. I smiled fondly at him.

"Don't worry about it. I mean , I am still your bodyguard. It's my job to make sure you stay alive. Eleanor…I promised her that." I said. Eren's eyes fell for a second and then he nodded in agreement.

"You are well?" Sten asked.

"Yeah I'm good."

"You do not seem to be possessed. Very well but should you lose control of that form, I will put you down with my blade." Sten said.

"Good and make sure I stay down." I said, finally standing up and giving him a fist to chest bump.

"Ugh, why does my mouth taste like dirt?" Alistair said. Derek and Oghren guffawed.

"You'll get used to it Templar." Derek said. Wynne woke up but a bit dizzy.

"Mi niña? Are you well?" Zevran said, putting his hand on my shoulder.

"Yeah, I'm feeling loads better, thank you."

"So are you going to explain to us what happened earlier?" Talen asked. Everyone had their eyes on Wynne. She sighed and, in my opinion, looked her age.

"Back in the tower, when I was trying to save all the mages I could, I found myself against a very powerful demon. Petra was in the line of fire. I managed to defeat the demon but at the expense of my life."

"You don't look like an undead to me." Alistair said.

"Let me explain. As I felt my life ebbing away, I felt a sort of warmth come over my body. I have always had a feeling that something inside the fade was protecting me. When I was dying, that same spirit reached out to me and prolonged my life. I called upon that same spirit to help protect Nia although it made it weak. I just thought it might help in a pinch." Wynne explained.

"Wow, now we have two 'abominations' in the group." Talen said, and I punched him in the arm.

"3 if you count yourself." Derek said, slapping Talen's back. Talen groaned from both of the hits.

"Alright, we've taken a good rest. Let's keep going." Eren said, Alfred barking right next to him. We went past the great double doors through a side passage. It reminded me almost of Jarvia's hideout. The 4 GWs tensed. Darkspawn time. We only met with five, 3 Genlocks and 2 Hurlocks. They were quickly dispatched by the Two handed Trio. They packed a heavy punch. As we continued further through the winding cave, we were met with another grand cavern. We found a Hurlock and a Genlock with a bronco.

Alistair and Eren went for the bronco. Alfred came up behind the animal while Derek focused on the darkspawn beside it. The darkspawn were easily dispatched but the bronco gave us some trouble. Oghren slashed its face with his great axe but that only made it angry. It charged straight for Sten. He positioned his blade parallel to the floor, letting the Bronco's momentum carry it forward. The sword impaled it and the bronco went down.

We were faced by another three team of two genlocks and an emissary that came running after the first team. Alistair took the emissary head on, cleansing its mana. One Genlock got an arrow through the throat and my punch in its face. Another was beheaded by Zevran.

"This isn't the last of them. There's more through those doors." Talen said.

"Well I guess here is where we split up. Talen, Derek, take Morrigan, Zevran, Leliana, and Sten to the left. Oghren, Nia, Alistair, Alfred, and Wynne, come with me." Eren said. There were two doors on opposite sides. Eren opened one and the battle began. The first room had 4 genlocks, a Hurlock and another Emissary. Good thing we got Alistair. Unfortunately he got into a trap and was paralyzed. The emissary sent a fireball but luckily Wynne put up a shield to deflect it. Man, I am so glad these things don't wear helmets. It was easy finding and crushing their skulls.

The paralyzation wore off and Alistair rushed the emissary with his shield, clocking it three times. Oghren was swinging wildly through the genlocks, using the force of sheer strength to get through their weak armor. Eren finished off the Hurlock and we went through the other door.

"Wait." I said, stopping Eren. I tip toed into the room and shifted the dust on the floor. It was a pressure plate. I took my blade out and took off the plate from above and disabled it. There was going to be another one later on. Eren stepped right into the room. There were 9 genlocks in total. Alistair and Eren went for the 3 that were in front of us. Oghren tried to rush the 4 archers in the back, but they quickly moved through the second plate.

"Sodding monsters!" Oghren yelled. He followed them and tripped the trap. A fireball followed him but he dodged and it hit the remaining archers. The seared meat smelled disgusting but they were all dead.

"Let's go regroup." Alistair said. We went back into the cavern to where the others were. They were all done with that side.

"It's a dead end here." Derek said.

"We found another passage on our side. Let's go." Eren said. We went through the winding cave and came upon a Hurlock, emissary and 5 corrupted spiders. The two handed Trio rushed them while Eren and Alistair kept the spiders attention. I made sure to come up from behind them to squash their bodies. Alfred grabbed hold of a spider's head and completely crushed it in its jaws. The other darkspawn were killed expertly.

"Why does it always have to be spiders?" I said, trying to get their blood off my daggers.

"At least you are no longer afraid of them." Morrigan commented. I shrugged my shoulders and continued on. We came out of the cave and into more dwarven architecture. We found some more darkspawn and shrieks as well. I was able to also disable a tripwire. I hate their…shrieks, wow that was bad. Anyway the good thing about Shrieks was that they don't wear armor. They mostly just wear rags which made it easier to just go in and get their squishy bits. Zevran and I handled the shrieks while the rest of them got the darkspawn.

After getting rid of them, we found this huge carved cavern. We were also met with a horde of darkspawn. Luckily Talen pre-sensed them and summoned an enormous inferno. Morrigan followed suit with a tempest. It was awesome. The stragglers were eventually consumed by their burns.

"That was awesome." I said.

"You should see what Storm of the Century looks like, now that's awesome." Talen said. We continued on. I marveled at the artistry of the cavern really. To be able to carve everything like this is beautiful. We came on the bridge and were surrounded by Shrieks. Derek and Sten did the smart thing and tossed them over the bridge. Wynne was also able to do that with a good stonefist. I managed to cut two of them down. The only thing Shrieks are good at is ambushing, that's it. We crossed the bridge and came into another cavern.

There was an emissary there that was able to do some necromancy and summoned a bunch of skeletons to fight us. I was able to knock some of their heads off but skeletons are tricky. When they are possessed by a demon from the fade, all you have to do is crush the skull. When they are being commanded, you have to kill the mage that's supplying the mana. We kept them at bay while we let Alistair do his duty. Heh. After the enemy mage went down, the skeletons stopped moving.

Then we went down the corridor.

Sure enough I got freaked out.

"First day they come and catch everyone."

We all stopped in our tracks.

"Um-"

"Did someone just heard that?" Alistair asked.

"Well that's not good." Talen said.

"Disembodied voices anyone?" I said.

"Ugh, is that meat?" Leliana said. Sure enough there was meat coming out of the walls. Alfred started to dry heave.

"That is unnerving." Sten said.

"Let us continue." Wynne said.

"Second day, they beat us and eat some for meat."

"Tis not bode well."

I always hated this part.

"Fifth day they return and it's another girls turn."

"What they skipped the 3rd and 4th day?" Talen asked.

"Who is saying all of this?" Eren said.

"We need to be on our guard." Sten said.

"Sixth day her screams we hear in our dreams."

"This is getting morbid." I said.

"Let's just move our sodding rumps already!"

"Seventh day, she grew as in her mouth they spew."

"Ugh, disgusting." Derek said.

"Eighth day, we hated as she is violated."

"This is seriously weird." Talen said.

"And creepy." Leliana said.

"Ninth day, she grins and devours her kin." I gulped audibly.

"Wait a minute…" Oghren said.

"Now she does feast, as she's become the best." Oghren opened the door. I really wanted to vomit even though there was nothing in my stomach. The room had flesh, torn bodies, darkspawn and dwarves. The stench was horrendous. Even worse than charred darkspawn. I heard Alistair dry heave but Oghren continued on like it was nothing. She continued the dark poem in between shoving meat in her mouth. Talen walked with him.

"What is this an elf? Exotic and Impossible. Feeding time only brings kin and clan. You are a dream, an illusion. The open door has been shut and stranger's faces are only a cruelty forced upon myself." She said, scratching at her arm that was already bleeding blood. Her face was spotted with the taint and her eyes milky and unfocused.

"Hespith! By the stone, is she corrupted?"

"Corruption! The men did that. The lost their minds and died first. They were spared. No. The men they kill, the woman they want. They feed. Flesh, Kin, bile, blood. I wished it upon Laryn. I wished that she was taken first but I had to watch the change. How does anyone endure that? How did Branka endure that?"

"Branka! Hespith where is she!?" Oghren said, shaking her.

"D-Do not talk about Branka, of what she did. I was her captain but couldn't stop her. Ancestor's preserve us, I failed in protecting them. Forgive me. Her lover and I couldn't convince her. I could not make her turn back. Forgive her, but no she cannot be forgiven."

"Hespith stop talking in riddles and tell me where the sod is Branka!" Oghren shook her.

"I cannot forgive her. Not for what she had done, what she has become."

"When, when did you see her?"

"No…I swore not to speak more…No more of Branka…I will not become what I had to see! Not Laryn, not Branka!" Hespith said, pushing Oghren away and running out of the passage.

"By the stone, what happened?" Oghren said.

"Something happened." Talen said. We walked out of that nightmare of a room. As we walked back into the cavern we heard her voice echo.

"Branka was obsessed…but that is not enough. That word is not strong enough to describe her. Blessed stone, she was no longer Branka. Nothing was in her besides the Anvil."

"Hespith you come down here and talk to us like normal!" Oghren said.

"Darkspawn!" Alistair shouted. I heard the stomps of ogres. Two of them, but just the two. Oghren growled and ran up to one. He cleaved the leg off of one. Derek went after him. Sten, Alistair, and Eren focused on the other one. MTW kept diverting their spells to one and the other. Zevran and I stayed behind with Leliana who kept using her arrows.

One ogre was able to charge at Sten but Alfred jumped onto his back and latched on to its neck. Using that distraction, Alistair had made a deep cut through its stomach. Both were cut down.

"We tried to escape. Then they found us. They took us. Turned us."

"Hespith!" Oghren shouted.

"There's no point Oghren. Just leave her be." Derek said.

"No! She knows where Branka is!"

"Don't you get it?! We're in the Dead Trenches! There is only one place after this!" Derek shoved Oghren to look at him. Oghren blanched.

"The Anvil of the Void." Derek nodded.

"Let Hespith talk. We'll fight our way out of here. You know Branka's signs. We'll get there." Derek said. Oghren spat on the floor and grunted. That's as much as a yes that you'll get from him. We continued through some double doors.

"By the stone…" Derek mumbled.

"Bownammar." Oghren said. We saw visible spirits but it didn't look like they were harmful…for now. Talen found the altar and took everything that was there. Which got the spirits angry. We got through them thanks to some helping spells from Talen and Morrigan. For some odd reason the runes on my weapons did greater damage to them than the ones back in the Ortan Thaig.

"They kill the men…they are merciful. The woman they want to mold. They want to touch, to change, to be filled by them…"

"I don't like where this is going…" Leliana said.

"Sounds like a very bad romance no?" Zevran said. I just gave him a side long glance and shook my head. Eren took the key from Talen and opened the doors.

"They took Laryn. They made her eat our friends. She tore off her husband's face…and drank his blood." I started to shiver. We were so close to It. "As she ate she grew. She turned grey and…smelled like them…She swelled in size. They had remade her in her image and then she made more of them."

I felt cold and clammy. Everyone was also on edge. The walls and the floor had a film of meat to them. We rounded around the corner.

"Broodmother."

* * *

**Did I just end it there? Yes, yes I did :D You guys have to wait 3 more days for the battle with the Broodmother! I swear this chapter in the Orzammar quest line always freaks me out. Disembodied voice? Signs that darkspawn rape women and force them to eat flesh? Broodmothers? It's some silent hill horror.**

**Shout out to Sanni973, Prizzma, and mrsshadriss for following/favoriting this story!**

**emelian65: **_Se va a tomar tiempo tu sorpresa pero va venir cuando acaban a encontrar el Urn of Sacred Ashes. Como 15 mas capitulos pero te va a gustar mucho_ :3  
**EG: **_Happy :D  
_**Shinedown: **_Then you should love this chapter because it has more Eren deliciousness._

**The battle of the broodmother comes next! How will they fight it? Will someone dissolve in acid? Will Alistair get more cheese? Find this all on the next chapter of Days of our Lives!**


	31. The Anvil of the Void

Day 27 (?) Continued

The Broodmother had a massive body. Rolls of...well fat and...womanly parts with a grey bulge right behind it. That was where the darkspawn come from. Its hands were covered in blood. Oh and the stench was absolute horrific. Oh God it was grey and rotting and bleeding and spewing disgusting acid. It looked more like the Broodmother in Awakening with blood spurting all over the places. There were places on it's body where it looked like it was bitten. I couldn't control myself and threw up. Some of the others did as well.

"What…what is that?" Leliana whispered in fear.

"Broodmother. That's what happens to women when the darkspawn…when they…" I tried to say but the end result that was right in front of me kept me from completing that sentence. Wynne, Leliana, and Morrigan had fearful looks on their faces.

"That's why the shriek tried taking you away…" Talen mumbled in horror. My stomach wrenched painfully again. My tears started to come out. God, why did you plunge me into this hell? The thing roared and spewed corrosive spit. It's tentacles waving around. Soon our entrance was blocked by them. We were forced to fight for our survival. Ogren, Sten, and Derek went for the tentacles. It didn't matter since some reached at us. I stayed behind with Zevran and Leliana, making sure those tentacles didn't grabbed MTW. Alfred had already started to jump up the thing's body.

Eren and Alistair each took a side, cutting it in places and cutting some of it's body off. The tentacles wrapped around them and threw them across the cavern. Derek managed to take one out, only for another one to come in its place. One grabbed my foot and threw me into the Broodmother's body. That when it roared again.

"More darkspawn coming!" Derek shouted. Genlocks started to pour from right behind her. One had tried grabbing on to me but I just slammed my foot on its face. There were three surrounding me but I kept punching their faces and kicking them away from me. Talen was able to shoot out a chain lightning spell which got rid of some of the genlocks. Oghren and Derek were up fighting off the tentacles to try to get closer to the Broodmother.

Alistair was able to chop another off and Sten was protecting the mage group. Zevran had come up to the side again of the Broodmother. Then it did its acid attack, forcing us away. I got out of the group of darkspawn and got a hold of a tentacle. I began to whittle it down before it was just a stump. After that there were no more new tentacles.

"Derek, Sten focus on the tentacles! Morrigan and Talen hit it with your freezing spells!" Eren shouted, fighting off the last Genlock. Derek pounded a tentacle into mush and Sten cut another one off. Through sheer luck, the face of the Broodmother was encased in ice.

"Now!" Eren shouted. We all ganged up on the Broodmother. Cutting it into pieces little by little. Then it managed to let out another corrosive vomit. I heard Zevran cry out. It had caught his leg.

"Zevran!" I shouted, running to him and grabbing onto a potion that I had. I quickly slathered it on his leg and dragged him away. The Broodmother roared again. Another group of darkspawn came toward us. Zevran was out of commission. Another 2 found us and I made sure that my punches cracked their skulls. I managed to dent one's armor and got to its flesh underneath. I kicked their bodies away. There were only two more tentacles surrounding it. It had grabbed onto Alfred and started to crush him.

"NO!" Eren screamed. He climbed its body and started to attack its head directly. He slashed the broodmother's throat. Alfred was let go like a rag doll. Eren grabbed his sword and plunged it right through the Broodmother's skull. I heard it give off the death gurgle.

Talen summoned another chain lightning before fainting from over using his mana. I slung Zevran's arm over mind and helped him walk to the group. Wynne was already focused on healing Alfred. She gave Alfred a few mabari crunch treats to help with the pain.

"How is he?" Eren asked.

"He is fine. I was able to heal the broken bones, but he will need rest."

"I think we all do." Oghren said.

"That's where they come from…" We all looked up. There was Hespith again. Her arm already exposing bone from her clawing it. "That's why they hate us…that's why they need us. That's why they take us…That's why they feed us."

"Hespith…" Oghren mumbled.

"She's turning into one, isn't she?" Leliana said with tears in her eyes.

"But the true horror…was that she allowed it…Branka…my love…" Oghren clenched his teeth. "The stone has punished me dream-friend. I am dying of something worse than death…Betrayal." Then she left. Oghren snapped and screamed. He went up to the corpse of the Broodmother and kept on attacking it with his axe. Derek made his way to him but Eren stopped him and shook his head.

"Let's go back to where we found the Dead Caste and rest." Eren said wearily. Zevran grunted in pain when he stepped on the leg that got the acid burn. No one spoke while we back tracked. It's been a particularly draining day. Morrigan did what she could for Zevran's leg with the minor healing magic that was taught by Talen. It would leave a scar, but it no longer burned.

We set up camp. I lost my appetite a long while ago. Oghren calmed down and began to take down some notes alongside Derek. We're here, we have time. Alistair and Eren are both keeping watch. The rest of us are in our respective tents. Leliana keeps on twitching right next to me. I think she's having a nightmare. God, this was horrifying. I think I got everything down. Oh I hope I have no dreams.

Day 28 ?

I did have a nightmare unfortunately. I dreamt that my daughter became a Broodmother. I'd rather not go into specifics. Anyway we finally got some rest. By the time I woke up, Talen had already healed Zevran's leg.

"Time to continue forward." Oghren said. Everyone got packed up. We were all tired. I know I just wanted this to end. We went back into the Broodmother chamber. Oghren made it into a pile of flesh.

"Geez, overkill much?" I said.

"No such thing, now where…? Ah! Here it is. We just follow his cave and hopefully we can find Branka." Oghren said. Oh I know we were going to find her. It was going to be an experience no doubt.

"We also need to keep an eye on supplies. We are running low." Sten said.

"Talen you have been sneaking in bites have you?" Wynne asked.

"No. If I have, it would have already been all gone now." Talen said. Leliana chuckled and I just rolled my eyes. I yawned. I felt tired and my body ached. I also seriously need a bath. All of us do after battling darkspawn after darkspawn.

"So how long until we reach this Anvil of the Void?" Alistair asked.

"Not sure. We don't have any maps leading to the sodding place. We only got here through Branka's maps. They all end here. Don't worry kid, I can see Branka everywhere in these caves." Oghren said.

"Well at least that's reassuring." Alistair said.

We found a small underground river again. It looked semi clear. Eren and the others recommended it for washing our armor and weapons but we can't drink it. Everything by this point has already been tainted. We've actually found fresh dwarven bodies. They weren't decaying thanks to the taint. Oghren has been in a foul mood. There were people that he recognized on those faces.

From what I remember in game, it shouldn't take us too long to reach the Anvil of the Void. The thing is I don't know at this point if we'll save it or destroy it. Eren wouldn't want to sacrifice the innocent. Alistair, Wynne, and Leliana are on that. Zevran and Sten see it logically. Morrigan would totally go for it as well as Oghren for his wife. Derek and Talen I'm not really so sure about. At this point it's up in the air. Good song, now I have that stuck in my head.

Well water break is over. Got to keep going.

Day 29?

This has been a rather eventful day.

We were going through a small cave which looked familiar to me.

"Yep, we're definitely on the right track. Keep your wits about you. Branka won't be unprepared." Oghren said.

All of a sudden the walls started to crumble.

"Run!" Eren shouted. We all ran out as the ceiling almost caved in on us. Then we came to a clearing with various walls set up. I looked up and there was Branka.

"Well isn't this a surprise?" Branka said. Oghren coughed from the dust that had swirled from the cave in but it quickly turned into laughter.

"Well shave my ass and call me an elf! Branka! By the stone, I barely recognized you!"

"Oghren. I expected you would come sooner than later. Hopefully you can find your way back easier. And what of your entourage? I can't believe that this many people would find your ale breath amusing."

"These are the Grey Wardens and their companions so treat them with respect woman!" Oghren yelled. Branka snorted.

"And why are they here? I would have suspected that the Assembly all but destroyed us. Let me guess, is Endrin dead? That's the most possible thing I can think of. So you are all here as important errand boys then?"

"We need a paragon's voice in the Assembly. If we don't then it's deadlocked." Derek said.

"And why should I care even if they put a lyrium addled nug on the seat? All of that wouldn't matter if you don't get the Anvil! Don't you see? The means to forge the ancient golems, the one thing that has held off the scourge of the darkspawn and Archdemon is here! I can almost taste it!"

"So why are you here and not with it?" Talen asked. Branka smirked.

"There are traps laid by Caridin himself. I have sacrificed everything in order to get by, clan and soul. This is what's important! This has lasting meaning! Everything that follows suit just benefits from the Anvil. I have sacrificed everything and I would sacrifice anything to get the Anvil of the Void."

"Does that include Hespith and every single dwarf in your clan?" Alistair said coldly.

"Enough. If you want my vote in the Assembly then you will help me. Even if you don't, there is only one way out and that's through the Gauntlet."

"What has this place done to you? I don't even recognize the woman standing before me! I married a girl that with a quick conversation you could see her brilliance!"

"I am your paragon." Branka said and put herself on top of the wall. The 4 GWs looked to the cave. We must march forward. We came into the clearing with Lyrium veins poking out of the ground. Darkspawn came through the opening. The 4 GWs ran and started to fight with them. I went ahead along with them. I didn't want to hear Branka's rambling about the Anvil. I couldn't count how many started to come out. They came out in packs. Even as the 4 GWs tried to command their attention, darkspawn still got through. Genlocks were easy to take care of since I'm able to deal fatal cranium blows. Once the first wave was gone, we all took a breath.

"More are coming out!" Derek shouted. We went farther through the clearing, near the opening where they were coming out. I saw an emissary trap Leliana and the familiar stomps of an Ogre. It wasn't alone either.

"Focus on the ogre! Talen make sure that no one gets tainted!" Eren shouted. Talen came over to us while Derek, Alistair, and Eren fought the incoming horde. They ran right for us. I beat them with my fists but a Hurlock clocked me with its shield. Thankfully my helmet protected me from it. I rolled toward it's back and tripped it. I straddled the Hurlock and punched its face in. I avoided two more Genlocks. Sten was right behind and got them with his greatsword. The emissary was screaming in horror. Morrigan had probably used one of her entropy spells.

I saw the Ogre cut down and the second horde was done. Talen got all the darkspawn blood that was on all of us and sent it out.

"Come on. The only path that lies ahead of us is forward." Derek said. We found more dwarven corpses. Some with their faces peeled off, others already succumbed to the taint. It was nerve wrecking. We followed the cave and I smelled something that burned my nostrils.

"Ugh, what is that smell?" Leliana wondered.

"Poison. We should avoid breathing it in for too long." Zevran said.

"So I guess this must be the next trap." Oghren wondered.

"How are we going to even get through it if we can't breathe?" Talen wondered.

"Or light fires as well." Zevran said.

"Great." Talen pouted.

"We've got no choice so take a deep breath and hold it." Derek said. We all did and we went in the room. There were dozens of golems in there. I knew what I had to do. The poison were coming from somewhere. As we kept walking, the golems awoke.

"Vashedan!"

"Andraste's sword!"

"Holy Maker!"

I evaded the golems and ran to where the switches were. More golems awoke. We were fighting with a walking battering ram. Swords wouldn't count for anything against them. I found the valves. Two closed, two more to go.

I saw one golem get taken down. Then one was right in front of me. I took a jump back before it embedded its fist in the floor. I ran away from it to the other valves. My tears were streaming from the burning air and I was already wheezing. Two more valves closed. Suddenly there was a woosh of air coming from all sides. The poison dissipated.

"Burn you sods!"

"Hit the deck!"

Talen let forth a stream of fire that got on all of the golems. Who knows how long they have been standing here but, whatever they absorbed, it caught fire. Talen laughed like a maniac and Wynne got them with her stonefist. Soon they were all piles on the floor.

"And that's what happens when you face a Grey Warden mage!" Talen said, kicking one of them.

"Calm down priss! We aren't out of the cave yet." Derek said. Talen just scoffed. This wasn't the first room with golems though. I remembered the blades from the wall trap. We went into the next room. None of them moved so far.

"Wait." I said. I grabbed onto a nearby rock and through it where the trap was supposed to be. Sure enough, blades came from and hit each other. "There's gonna be more up ahead."

"You have a sharp eye mi niña." Not really. Just good memory. The golems began to move yet again. I grabbed onto my first rock and did the same thing. This time I missed. I had a golem right behind me. It was getting ready to do that earth shattering punch again. I looked back for a second. I had to time this right or risk dying, again. It punched and I dodged. It staggered in front a little but not enough. I kicked with all of my might and it tripped on the steps, triggering the trap.

Talen was getting fire happy again. All of us just stood on the sidelines as the mages did their work. The golems were on the ground before you knew it.

"There shouldn't be any more traps. Let's go." I said. I knew that the last trap was going to be hard. The weird part from this? I kept getting shocked from absolutely nothing. It was probably from the lyrium vein that was right above us.

"What is that?" Eren said. A lyrium vein was directly connected to the 4 faced stone statue. The anvils placed right in front of them.

"Don't get too near that thing. If that lyrium vein comes down, we're all goners." Oghren said. I grabbed Leliana and Eren.

"Don't ask how I know, but we're going to need to work together on this. That statue is going to summon warriors. When we take one down, an anvil will shine and do damage on the statue. Once all the faces are down is when this trap will stop." I said. Eren looked at me like I was crazy but Leliana got that understanding look on her. Probably from way in Lothering when I told her I could possibly see the future. Not the complete truth but it did work. "Just trust me on this one."

"I believe you." Leliana said. Eren nodded. We went toward it. The faces started to move. The spirits were summoned. It was go time. Eren and I only focused on one while everyone else just attacked indiscriminately. Once that one warrior fell down, the anvil started to shine. I placed my hand on it and it went toward the statue. I heard a rumble from the mechanism.

"Everyone only focus on one enemy at a time! If the anvil shines, touch it!" Eren shouted. When 11 people focus on one enemy, they tend to get killed right away. We were able to take it down easily. Oghren and Derek both got jittery when the vein rumbled but the vein stayed where it was.

We made our way through the door. This was it. We were going to see Caridin. It was a magnificent cavern with rivers of lava pouring forth from the walls. The lyrium vein coming out of the ground in spikes and running along the walls. A lone steel golem in the middle.

"My name is Caridin, once known as a paragon to the dwarves of Orzammar. If you seek the Anvil, then care for my story, or be doomed to relive it."

"By the stone, it's another paragon…" Derek breathed.

"In my time I made many things for the city of Orzammar. I rose to fame and earned my status on a single item: The Anvil of the Void. It allowed me to make a man into a wonder of steel or stone, a mind as flexible and clever as any soldier. As an army, they were invincible but no one knew of the cost."

"I don't like where this is going." Talen said.

"No mere dwarf, human, or elf, not even I, a grand master smith, has the power to create life. To bring a golem to life, I had to take lives from elsewhere."

"Like blood magic." Alistair whispered.

"I had started from taking volunteers but my king grew greedy. Soon he started making me take the lives of the casteless and criminals. Then he began hunting down his political enemies and putting them to the Anvil. It took feeling the blow of the hammer myself, to realize my folly."

"Still tis a useful object. A man into a golem would be worth ten soldiers on the field."

"It doesn't matter! You're using people lives to make them!" Alistair said.

"We aren't considering this, are we?" Leliana asked.

"No, we're not." Talen said.

"Are you kidding priss!? Look at my city! If we had the Anvil then we can finally beat some sense in these darkspawn!" Derek said.

"You really want to argue about this Derek!? If you take that Anvil then I'm leaving for good! I might be a blood mage and I might have taken the potion, but there is no way I'm going to see your blind and greedy future brother-in-law take the same road! I saw what was in Bhelen's eyes, I heard the rumors! If he gets his grubby hands on that thing, Orzammar will pay in blood!" Talen shouted. "What if Rica talked back to him like Caridin huh!? Can you afford to see your sister a golem like him!?" Derek stayed quiet.

"Even I can see the darkness in that man's eyes." Sten mumbled quietly.

"I do not see the fuss about this item. I say we take it and give it to the other Paragon and-"

"That's enough Morrigan." Eren said. All eyes were on him. He looked at me for a second. I shook my head slightly.

"Mi amigo, think this through. This can certainly help our chances, no?"

"If I said that it would be better if you were a golem, would you let me change you?" Eren said. Zevran flinched back.

"The Anvil must be destroyed." Eren said.

"Then you must do it friend. No golem can touch the Anvil. You must do this in my stead."

"No! The Anvil is mine! I won't let you take it from me!" Branka shouted from behind us. "Don't listen to him! He's been wasting away in these filth for hundreds of years, his mind is not is own! If you help me, I will make sure that the army you have will crush those darkspawn into their end days!"

"Branka! You've gone mad! Don't you see what this thing has done to you?" Oghren shouted back.

"Our empire, our glory should not be used as a shit hole for these darkspawn waste! This is not what our people should be living with! With the Anvil, we can properly restore our pride!"

"I won't let you turn more people into golems! It's stops here!" Talen said, whipping out his staff.

"Thank you friend, your compassion shames me."

"I will take that Anvil! You will not stop me, not as long as I draw breath!" Branka said, taking out her control rod. The golems around us reacted to the control rod and cracked as they came to life again.

"A control rod! Please friend, I cannot stop her myself!"

"Attack!" Alistair said. Caridin summoned more golems to fight her own golems but some still broke away. Derek and Oghren faced the golems. Talen rushed over to where Branka is. I followed him to make sure he didn't kill himself. Branka was swinging her axe like mad towards him. He kept dodging but didn't have enough time to conjure spells. I came in with one of my rolls and knocked Branka off her feet. She didn't take that and charged me with her shield.

Talen summoned some fire and got her dead on but it didn't deter her. It made her angrier. All she had in her eyes was Talen. Her back was toward me and I decided to jump on her. I wrestled her to the ground. She took every opportunity to hit me with her shield. My breath was knocked out of me several times and I started to grow dizzy. I saw an opportunity and took it. I clocked her on the side of the head. She staggered. It was just a quick moment, all in slow motion. I saw her head reel back, her throat in my sights. I stepped forward with my blades.

I didn't even realize I cut open her throat until I had the warm blood spewing on my face. Even then she didn't slow down. Her axe hit into my side and I heard bones breaking. In less than a minute she finally bled out. The control rod fell from her grasp and they all fell down.

I gasped in pain and Talen ran over to me.

"Branka!" Oghren shouted and knelt to where she was. There were so many emotions going through his face. I turned away. I couldn't look him in the eye. I was the one that killed her. All of a sudden, I felt extremely heavy like the weight of my sin was crushing me. I felt the healing magic pour into my wound. I saw Alistair, Eren, and Derek talk to Caridin but my mind was elsewhere. Caridin went to go up to the ledge which held the Anvil and the sounds of the hammer echoed in the chamber.

Oghren got up and joined the rest of the team. Leliana came and sat by me. I couldn't take my eyes off Branka. I wondered if God was sick of my forgiveness prayers.

"You did what you had to. She was going to kill us all for the Anvil." Leliana said. I said nothing. I saw Caridin come down with the crown. I knew Oghren was probably asking if he could make Branka into a golem. Soon Derek followed Caridin to the Anvil. I saw the blue lights of the shattered Anvil and saw Caridin fling himself to the lava.

I wanted to cry but at this point we almost had no water. I had to conserve whatever I had for the journey back. I got everything written down. Derek is still taking notes from all the names we found from the volunteers of Caridin.

I'm tired. Leliana kept on consoling me but I just kept thinking about the blood in my hands. There's so much blood on my soul. What really freaked me out was how I just did it. The opportunity was there, clear as day and, without a second glance, I took it. It scared me. Who was I turning into where I can just easily take someone's life like that? To see the blood pouring from someone and live in that moment?

Who am I? Because at this point I don't even know.

* * *

**Existential life crisis! We're finally done with the Deep Roads! You know what happens after this? Redcliffe, undead, undead everywhere. Can't wait for it can you?**

**emelian65: **_Si tu sorpresa va hacer antes de Mark of the Beast pero va hacer cuando encuentran el Urn of Sacred Ashes._ :3  
**shinedown: **_oh trust me this story won't end for a really long time. This is going to encompass all of Dragon Age all the way up to inquisition. :3_

**I'm actually done with the attack on Redcliffe and on the start of the Urn :3 once I get the Mark of the Beast, we'll be more than halfway through the story! Please Review!**


	32. A New King, A New Ally

Day 35?

Wow it's been six days since I wrote in here. Not much has been happening and there really has been no time to write. We think that the Archdemon probably summoned every single darkspawn from the Deep Roads because we haven't found any resistance going back to Orzammar. We're past the Dead Trenches now and are getting closer to the Ortan Thaig. We found the water stream and filled our bellies with water. All we have now is basic dried jerky. All of our food has run out. At least we now have mostly clean water.

Oghren has been quiet since the Anvil. I've been quiet too. It was my fault he was now a widower. There was blood on my soul.

"Mi niña you have not smiled once since our departure. Your face will remain that way if you do not change it." Zevran said.

"You know that's not true." I said.

"What is bothering you mi niña?" I stayed quiet. We were at the end of the group trailing along. I sighed.

"I killed Branka."

"We have killed many since the start of our journey."

"No that's not the point. I saw it Zevran. I acted on instinct. Her throat was in front of me and, without thinking, I killed her. Just one slice of my blade and it was over."

"I would say that it was a very expert move."

"I don't want to be an expert on killing people Zevran!" I harshly whispered. I felt the tears in my eyes now. "I don't want that instinct in my life. The fact of a simple motion that can kill a person. I hate this! I don't know who I am anymore." I gulped down the lump in my throat but my vision blurred with unshed tears. "What if I keep changing? What if my kids can't see me the same anymore? What if my husband can't look at me anymore?! What if-"

"What's going on?" Eren asked, coming from the front of the group.

"Nothing mi amigo."

"Doesn't look like nothing." Alistair said, coming up right next to Eren. I saw Zevran move right in front of me.

"It is something she doesn't want to discuss. You respect her privacy, no?" I finally reigned in my emotions and wiped my tears.

"I'm fine guys, really." Eren had that skeptical look on his face.

"Go to the front Alistair. We'll talk later Nia." Eren said. I saw a few worried glances but I just stared at the ground. I can't stop and break down now. I had to keep going. I felt Zevran grab my hand and gave it a good squeeze. It almost made me cry again.

Day 36?

We found the hot springs again. Oh God I sorely needed that bath. All the girls were in there again. Morrigan wasn't talking to anyone. She really didn't like the fact that we destroyed the Anvil. I yawned. I couldn't wait to go back to Orzammar. We're on the outskirts of the Ortan Thaig. Another week or less, considering that Derek and Oghren are both pushing us to jogging the whole way back.

I sighed in relief though. The warm water made my body feel better. Morrigan was the first one out and I let out a breath.

"She doesn't seem too happy." Wynne said.

"She really wanted us to use the Anvil." I said.

"I don't see why. Using people lives in order to make an indestructible weapon to kill, why would anyone want that?"

"She did."

"I was surprised that Talen vehemently opposed it. I would have thought from this other talents-"

"That he would go for it? Talen only took those talents to help us. He's a good guy. Even though he's young, he sees things clearly you know?" I said. Leliana stared at me and then nodded.

"It's amazing the wisdom that can come from those younger than us." Wynne said.

"Yeah. Come on, I think we're clean enough. The sooner we get to Orzammar, the sooner we can eat." I said. We got out and dried ourselves. Good thing I always carry extra pair of clothes. The guys already bathed. We stayed to rest long enough for me to write but time to walk again.

Day 40?

We've finally reached the beginning of the Aeducan Thaig. We ran into some deepstalkers which staved off the hunger everyone was feeling at the moment. We ran out of food when we left the Ortan Thaig. We were running on fumes but the good thing was that we found the clean river. Derek and Oghren were really pushing everyone. Tempers were flaring. More than once Talen had to release some pent up rage at the walls. Oghren and Derek were downright getting into shouting matches at each other. Alistair and Morrigan also got into a scuffle. Everyone is grouchy and I'm getting tired of keeping the peace.

Well I'm not really keeping much of the peace either thanks to what I'm dealing with. What happened with Branka was really getting under my skin. I had always fought to protect myself. The only time I would take the offensive was when I was facing darkspawn. I, of course, had to kill the carta because they were aiming to kill us. I don't know if I'm over thinking it but something was wrong.

Oh who am I kidding. Truthfully, in that one moment, I enjoyed it. I saw the opportunity and took it. I was…happy when I took her life.

And that was destroying me from the inside. You should never feel joy from someone's misfortune. It was something that my mother ingrained into me. Sometimes I would enjoy tormenting the people who did me wrong but this was different. Like the time when Leliana was afraid of turning into Marjolaine because she enjoyed playing the game. I feel that the same situation has started to apply to me when I killed Branka. I was proud of my skills that have evolved from before I could barely walk in medium armor.

The fact that I was able to read an opportunity and react was the greatest thing a fighter would feel. When all the practice was put into motion, when practice turned second nature and it was frightening. What was I turning into? When where the days when I could barely look at myself when I took a life? Where was the guilt? The remorse? I've taken so many lives I could barely count them all.

If someone from back home learned the truth, they would never look at me the same way.

The blood will never wash off.

Could I even ask for forgiveness anymore?

Day 42?

We made it back.

Once we walked away from the entrance to the Deep Roads and into Orzammar, we were met with wide eyes. Dwarves from all over saw our haggard looks and faces covered in dirt.

"Ah, home sweet home." Derek said sarcastically.

"Let's get this over with." Oghren said, shoving Derek out of the way. We went up the stairs to go into the Diamond Quarter. Dwarves began to follow us. Whispers were going all around but I didn't catch any of it. I didn't want to listen. Leliana gave me a worried look and I gave her a small smile. It didn't stop her from grabbing my hand. God, I just wanted to sleep for a whole week.

We continued onward toward the Assembly Hall. The nobles finally noticed us and started to get their ass in gear to the Hall. The criers both grew silent. Dwarves were following us like a parade march. We found the double doors and the guards hastily opened them. Derek finally took the crown out of his pack and took a deep breath.

We followed him into the Assembly Hall. The whispers grew quiet as all eyes were on our group and the gleaming crown that Derek held.

"Lord Steward? I am sorry for interrupting, but the Grey Wardens have returned."

"See? Here are the Grey Wardens you all doubted! Am I to assume you found Paragon Branka?" Bhelen said. This would have been the second time I met him. He looked just like a fox that ate the canary.

"They would have only made the perilous trek just to sway the Assembly in your favor. Everyone knows that the Grey Wardens do your bidding." Harrowmont said.

"Enough! What news have you brought Grey Wardens?" The Steward said.

"We have been through much, learned, and saw things of great wonder through our trip in the Deep Roads. We didn't find but one Paragon. We did indeed found Branka but also Caridin." Derek started. The Deshyrs started to talk and whisper amongst themselves. "Caridin sacrificed centuries of his life guarding the Anvil of the Void. We were forced to choose."

"Branka had lost her mind to her obsession of the Anvil. She sacrificed her entire clan and forced a few to become…darkspawn to further her own ambitions. In the onslaught between the two Paragons, Branka forced our hand." Oghren explained with Derek. "After gaining the favor of Paragon Caridin, he forged a crown for Orzammar's next king. We destroyed the Anvil and hightailed it back here. Caridin made it the will of the Grey Wardens to choose." People cried outrage and the Steward called for order.

"And we should believe a drunkard and a casteless who are known to further Bhelen's plans?" Harrowmont shouted.

"Silence!" The Steward yelled. He came down the podium and Derek handed the crown to him. After a few tense moments, his eyes widened and he gasped.

"This…bears the ancient seal of House Ortan." There were many gasps in the crowds and people looking in wonder. "The Grey Wardens words ring true. The crown is of Paragon make. Whom did Caridin choose, Warden?"

"He gave me the choice Steward." Derek said. The Deshyrs looked around nervously. To them Derek was still a casteless even though he was now a Grey Warden.

"Then whom do you choose…Warden?" The Steward asked. Derek's lip grew tight.

"I chose Bhelen as the successor to King Endrin. He shall be crowned as the next King of Orzammar." Derek said. Gasps were heard throughout the chamber. Harrowmont looked ready to kill someone and Bhelen had a smug look on his face.

"Step forward, Bhelen Aeducan." The Steward said. The staves of the Deshyrs pounded rhythmically against the floor as Bhelen stepped down to retrieve his crown. He knelt on one knee.

"Let the Memories find you worthy, first amidst the lords of the houses, the King of Orzammar." Bhelen stood proudly with his crown.

"Thank you Wardens. As first act as King, I call for the banishment and execution of House Harrow-"

Then the clang heard around the world. The Deshyrs eyes looked in horror as Derek pounded his hammer between Bhelen and Harrowmont. He has never looked so angry.

"I gave you that crown in confidence and I can easily take it away." He growled.

"You have no authority-"

"I have all the authority that this Grey Warden symbol gives me! If I must fight against your tyrannical rule, then so be it." Derek said, swinging his hammer onto his shoulder. Bhelen and Derek went into a glaring match. The guards all started to look at one another, not knowing what to do. Bhelen let out a huge sigh.

"As my first act as King, I order the banishment of House Harrowmont to the surface. They are no longer welcome in the city of Orzammar. They have until today to leave." Bhelen said through his teeth. Harrowmont bowed and, like wounded dog, limped away from the Assembly.

"Wardens. I promised you aid in exchange for the crown. If you would join me in my chambers." Bhelen said, shoving Derek out of the way.

"Whoa, remind me never to piss you off Derek." Talen said. Derek chuckled darkly.

"You guys head back to base. We'll inform you once we're done with Bhelen." Eren said. Everyone nodded.

"Now that was an experience I never want to deal with again." Wynne said, fanning herself once we were out of there. I let out a sigh.

"Are you well?" Sten asked. Now I know things are getting bad if Sten is asking me how I am.

"You know? At this point I don't think so. Come on, I'm dying for a proper bath."

"If you would like mi niña perhaps I should-"

"I'm not in the mood Zevran." I don't know if I imagined a hurt look on his face or not, but it was gone in an instant.

"This is a welcome change from your unending optimism." Morrigan said.

"How about you shush Morrigan?" I said. Ooh I got the iciest stare from her. I didn't care though. At this point I just wanted a bath and a moment to contemplate my existence. Leliana put her hand to her mouth. Probably to stop herself from smiling. Sten actually chuckled.

"And what are you laughing at Qunari?"

"Absolutely nothing."

We got to the GW base. I separated myself from the group. I saw a servant and gave them the spare clothes that I had, besides the one outfit I was wearing underneath my armor. I told them to burn all of it. I took off my armor, my other clothing, and went straight to the baths. I had to wash everything. All I could feel was the stickiness of dried blood on my body. I washed and rinsed and repeated. I scrubbed so hard in some places that it started to hurt.

At this point I finally broke down. I never liked to cry in front of other people. If people care, I cry harder. I was a small ball of overflowing emotions in the bath. I knew I couldn't stay in there for too long though. I couldn't risk myself fainting. So I slowed down and just breathed. I get out of the bath and sat on the smooth boulders. I stared at the water for a bit, my feet dipping into the water.

I couldn't stay in there for all my life. I had to leave. The unfortunate thing was I had no more clean clothes. I only had a towel left from the servants. I groaned. This was not my day. I was saved when Leliana came in through the door.

"Oh, you are already leaving?"

"Well I'm trying to. I told the servants to burn off my clothing but now I have nothing to change into." I said, wrapping the towel around myself. Leliana gave me a sly smile. "Oh no, you, no! No, Leliana, don't you-" She quickly got out of the door and wouldn't open it. "Leliana! Open the door!"

"Not unless you agree to what I'm thinking!"

"I am not wearing anything girly or frilly! It doesn't look good on me!"

"Oh that is a complete and utter lie and you know it!"

"Leliana!" I whined. The door remained closed. I had two choices here. One: I get the towel, rush to my room, and convince a servant to get me some spare big clothes. Two: I agree to what Leliana wanted to do for me.

"They are doing a feast in our honor! You must wear something decent! I will not allow you to go to this feast with shapeless boots and horrible clothing!" Leliana said through the door. I stopped pushing. I groaned loudly. I clenched my teeth and rest my forehead on the door.

"Fine." Suddenly the door opened with me with it. I wasn't pushing anymore and she was still pulling. Which meant that gravity did its job and that meant I landed on top of Leliana, with only a towel. Guess who was there at that moment.

Talen.

My towel was still covering me for the most part. Talen has never been redder. We stayed like that for a couple of tense moments before my face became super flushed and I got off back through the door. Leliana came in as well, her face was also flushed.

"I'm so sorry Leliana, I didn't mean to-"

"No, no, it's fine. Just wait as I bathe. It won't take long."

I groaned again. I didn't wait long and Leliana also came with a towel. Her room was a lot closer to the baths than mine. We sneakily went into her room. I grew slightly cold. I wanted to have clothes on me.

"Oh I have just the color for you. Here, these are some of my spare undergarments. Hmm, you have a rare skin tone…green would highlight it for you…not dark, lighter. Oh and we'll do some make up and I have some nice white shoes!"

"Leliana, when did you even get the time to get all of this stuff?" I said. Her bottom garment fit ok. My hips were bigger. The other one…I had a lot of room left over…

"Oh don't worry about that. The dress I have will cover that part for you." She took it out. It was a long sleeved dress that reached all the way to the floor. The sleeves were lighter than the other material. It was a light soft color. It actually reminded me of my old prom dress. It had embroidering of pink roses near the ends with the vines and leaves reaching out to my waist. I tentatively put it on and it fit me extremely well. Leliana had small padding to help with my…problem.

She got a simple pink waist ribbon and tied it off in a bow. Leliana then shoved me right in front of a full body mirror and it took me for surprise. I knew I had lost weight, but I didn't realize how much until that moment. I was nearly the size as I was back in high school but this time I was toned. I didn't even recognize myself for a second.

"See? Do not depreciate the value in your body Nia. You are beautiful and don't let anyone tell you otherwise. Here, put on the shoes." Leliana gave me some small simple white heels. They had a small ribbon on the top. They were very nice and complimented the dress pretty well.

"Now sit down. Let's see if we can get your hair in a nice style. It has already grown longer." Leliana said, running her hand through my hair. It felt good. It was true. My hair had almost grown to my chin. Leliana grabbed the brush and started to brush. She swept it to a side and grabbed a small comb. It had a rose covered in resin. She did a few flicks and it stayed.

"What about you?" I asked. Leliana smiled and pulled out a much more frilly light purple dress with white embroidering.

"It will not take me long. We will need to meet our dates in a minute." Leliana winked at me.

"Dates? How long did I spend in the bath for you to plan all this out?" Leliana giggled.

"A woman is always prepared for everything." I helped her shimmy in her dress. She had some ivory heels instead of white like mine. We both looked at each other in the mirror. We looked so different. She had put up a ribbon with some stones in her hair.

"Wow."

"See? Now let us not keep our dates waiting." Leliana said, kissing me on the forehead. I have to say, Leliana got skills. Although the dress was long, it was more of a train in the back than in the front. I was able to walk. I remembered my mom's lessons when walking in heels and soon I was walking like I had been doing this all my life. We came upon the door and there was Talen and Zevran. I rolled my eyes. Of course I'd be with Zevran. Talen had a set of new robes on his person. They were more rugged with fur shoulder pads. He didn't look half bad. Zevran gave both of us a once over.

"You two are as lovely as two roses on a fine summer day." He said, grabbing my hand and kissing it. He did the same to Leliana but Talen shoved him before his lips lingered for too long.

"Come on. I want to stuff my face as soon as I can." Talen said, putting his hand out for Leliana to take it.

"Do not fret mi amigo, the food will stay there. These lovely ladies will sooner disappear in the night once we take our eyes of them."

"I'll have to agree with Zevran on this one Talen. You never knew when Leliana and I are going to be all pretty like this again." Talen scoffed and opened the double doors. There were still a lot of dwarves in the streets. A few of them whistled at us and I wished that I had my daggers with me. Zevran grabbed my hand and pulled me closer to him. He had his hand on my waist. I sent him a warning glare.

"If that hand gets any lower, I will seriously ask Wynne to leak your brain out of your ears." Zevran laughed.

"You speak so dark to me mi niña. Do not worry, when have I never been the perfect caballero to you?" I just rolled my eyes as he brought me closer. It at least made the dwarves look away. We came in front of the Royal Palace. Nobles were coming in and out of the doors with guards watching everything closely.

"Everyone is already here besides Morrigan." Talen said as we went through the doors. There was a line of dwarves waiting to meet Bhelen. He had his dress plates on.

Then there was the food. Oh the food! There was also a few of my dishes hanging around here. There were two long tables full of food. These were very, very, VERY, long tables by the way. I found our group over in the corner. Derek and Oghren were both drinking a very big cup of whatever with Alistair cheering them on with gravy splattered on his face. Sten was helping himself to the sweets. Their cups hit the table at the same time.

"Hehe, not bad old timer!"

"You only wished you had the same tolerance that I have, drunk!" Derek said. Both had red cheeks and were laughing like old chums. I just rolled my eyes while Leliana giggled. That's when Alistair noticed us and stood up quickly.

"Uh, um, wow, you two look…uh…"

"And that, mi niña, is what your true beauty does to an innocent man."

"True beauty is in the eye of the beholder, Zevran."

"Let's just sit down and start eating!" Talen said. He helped Leliana in her seat and Zevran with mine. I got a big plate of everything while Alistair was still red faced. There was a few people that weren't here though.

"Where's Wynne and Eren?"

"Wynne told me that she would join a bit later. She wanted to rest first." Leliana said. Alistair cleared his throat and wiped away any traces of food from his face.

"E-Eren said that he would also be coming later. Until then, let's enjoy ourselves shall we?" Alistair said, taking a big gulp from his mug. I started to dig in. I saw Leto and waved to him. He waved back. Derek belched and Oghren congratulated him.

"After this to the Shaperate. Got a few documents to show them that we recovered." Derek said, drinking some more.

"You sure you're going to be sober by the time all of this is done?" Talen said. Derek guffawed.

"Don't underestimate my drinking priss, hey! Another mug full of ale for me!" Derek shouted.

"Don't get that sodding garbage. Try some of Oghren's home brew." Oghren chuckled, grabbing his flask and drinking from it. He passed it to Derek and he took a swig. Derek shuddered.

"Ugh! Not bad, not bad."

"Oooh, what's in there?" Alistair asked.

"Nothing for yer virgin eyes." Oghren said, taking another swig.

"Will you stop mentioning that?"

"Get used to it Alistair. Once you do it, we'll through you a big party to celebrate it, how's that?" Talen said, going through his third plate of food. He can really pack it in.

"I'd rather you not."

"How is the food mi niña? I see that you have influenced a few of the selections."

"Oh so much better than what the couple of past weeks have given me." I said smiling softly. Zevran kept eyeing me in the corner of his eye.

"Hey girly! Try this!" Oghren said, tossing me his flask.

"Aw, she gets a taste? I want to get drunk too! I never get drunk." Alistair whined.

"Trust me Alistair, you're not missing anything." I took a swig and God it burned! I felt tears prickle at my eyes and Oghren started to laugh and punched the table. "Oh God I cleared my sinuses with that. Not bad though. It at least goes down smoothly."

We stayed for a bit. Derek and Oghren kept getting more and more besotted. Alistair gaped at how much Talen kept eating and wondering where the hell it all went. Zevran kept making comments on all of us, minus Oghren, Sten, and Derek.

Eventually Wynne came to celebrate with us. By this point Oghren was snoring on the table, Derek had already gone to the Shaperate, and Talen had finally stopped eating.

"It seems like everything has livened up, hasn't it?" Wynne said, taking a seat.

"Wynne my gorgeous woman, you look marvelous and utterly irresistible." Zevran said.

"Thank you. My, my, Nia, you look like another woman almost."

"You have to thank Leliana for that. Eat. I might actually be heading out already."

"Aww, but it is so much better when you are here." Leliana pouted. She took more swigs from Oghren's flask than me. Her cheeks were already turning pink.

"Sorry, but I'm tired and I really want to sleep."

"You might not want to return to your quarters yet." Wynne said.

"Why? I don't think anyone would be too inconvenienced." Alistair said, drinking from his mug again. Wynne winced a bit and I face palmed.

"Oh no, he didn't!"

"Oh then you know?"

"Know what?" Talen asked.

"That Eren and Morrigan have done the deed." Alistair started to cough and Talen got super red.

"Hm, it seemed as though Derek has won our bet." Zevran said.

"You were betting on it!? How did this happen?" Alistair asked.

"You see Alistair, when a man and a woman like each other very much-" I started.

"No not that! Andraste's knickers, this is Morrigan for Maker's sake!"

"You cannot judge Eren mi amigo. Morrigan is like a prickly pear fruit. Thorns on the outside and utterly delicious-"

"Oh Maker, just stop! And you knew about this?"

"Hey I just call it as I see it. Morrigan follows Eren everywhere. It was a bit obvious." I said. Alistair groaned and Talen began to glare at the wall. "Anyway, as much as I would like to stay here and gossip, I want to sleep. I'll see you guys later."

"Let me escort you back mi niña." We said our goodbyes and Zevran grabbed my hand. I yawned the closer we got to the base. I opened the door and saw Alfred at the door.

"There you are. Let me guess, Eren kicked you out of the room?" Alfred whined. I shook my head. "Go on, there are bound to be leftovers." Alfred barked happily and went out.

"Ah this was a perfect day. A beautiful woman at my side, a full plate of food, and a bed that is very inviting." Zevran winked at me.

"How many times do I have to tell you no Zevran?"

"I will never tire of asking you."

"Just keep dreaming Zevran." I said. I yawned again and headed toward my room. Zevran was right beside me. I came to my room and was able to go in but Zevran did not let go of my hand.

"Nia." That made me turn around. I wasn't sure if it was the alcohol but Zevran looked nervous. He opened my palm and gave me a small circular object with various symbols etched on it. It was a disk the size of my palm.

"What is this?"

"It is an etched object with the prayers of Andraste. I know that you do not believe in her as we do. Although my line of work has not always been so easy, I feel like you can achieve forgiveness with this. It is only a thought no?" Zevran explained. The object seemed a lot more important when he said that. I smiled and hugged him. It was a bit weird because the heels made me a taller than him by a slight margin. I sighed contently.

"Thank you Zevran." He hugged me back. I pulled back before it became awkward and opened my door.

"Are you sure you don't need a massage before-"

"Good Night Zevran."

"An almost pleasure mi niña." I rolled my eyes and closed the door. I found my last black outfit on the table in my room, freshly cleaned. I took off my dress and shoes. As tired as I was I just couldn't sleep. My mind kept trailing back to the Deep Roads. I got everything written down at least. I think I'll try again to see if I can sleep.

* * *

**I loved writing this chapter by the way :3 Really got to let the group shine for a bit without death and mayhem everywhere.**

**Shout out to NamelessOne0 for favoriting/following this story!**

**EG: **_Oh yeah, I love the walking dead! I haven't been able to watch them because of the kiddies_ though...  
**KrystylSky: **_Thanks :3  
_**Mari Cousland: **_oh yeah no prob. I'll refer to you as your new penname. You aren't the only one that changes their names. Hopefully your friend likes my story :3  
_**emilian65: **_Yo tambien estoy esperando para escribir todo que esta en mi mente! Tengo todo planiado :3 hasta Inquisition! :D  
_**chaosrin: **_You might not have noticed but my character tends to avoid/repress all the bad things that she thinks about, not necessarily handle it by talking it out. This will come and bite her back though..._

**Damn this is a long chapter. Thank you for your reviews! :D I love receiving them from you!**


	33. Leaving Orzammar

Day 43?

I woke up with a slight headache. It was probably caused by the alcohol I drank last night. I looked at my room and sighed. We won't be able to stay here much longer. With the roads on the map the way they are I assumed that our next stop will be Redcliffe. I stretched and cracked a few bones as well. I got my black outfit and put it on. The dress was nice but I preferred comfortable clothes. I made my way into the dining room. No one was there at the moment. I did see a familiar face though.

"Hey Leto. We didn't get to talk last night, how goes it?" I asked sitting down.

"Wonderful my lady. We finally have a new king, the Grey Wardens are heroes again, and I also have something for you."

"Really?" Leto went off to get something for me while I waited. I thought about the weather as I waited for breakfast. Ferelden should be in the dead of winter. Traveling in cold weather, what a pleasure. Leto came back with a plate of pancakes, eggs, and hash browns. He held a book in his hands.

"This is what the Shaper made for you while you were away." Leto said. It was a recipe book with my name on it. I giggled sheepishly.

"Thank you! But…why does it say Nia Cousland? I'm not a Cousland."

"I suggested it." Eren said right behind me. He cracked his neck and went to sit by me. "Leto came to me shortly before we left on our journey to find Branka. I told him that you could use my last name." He yawned with tears in his eyes.

"You look exhausted. Did you do anything…productive last night?"

"Don't beat around the bush Nia, I know you know." I laughed while he tried flicking my forehead.

"Well I wouldn't say that I didn't know it was going to happen. It just threw me off last night when Wynne came to the feast to tell us."

"Wynne? I thought she joined all of you first chance?"

"Nope. She stayed to rest some more and…she heard you." Eren groaned and I chuckled a bit before digging into my breakfast. Leto came out with some for him as well.

"I assume everyone else knows?"

"Oh yeah, big time. So, how was it?"

"Are you seriously asking me that?"

"Considering I can see some scratches on your arm, I think it went well?" Eren playfully shoved me before I saw Derek and Leliana come in. Derek groaned when he sat down and hit his head on the table.

"Please excuse him, he is hung over." Leliana said.

"What the sod did I drink last night?"

"Some of Oghren's brew for the most part. How did the Shaperate go?"

"Well they made the Legion a caste, got some papers to make a new house, and the Shapers went all wide eyed when I gave them the volunteer names. It was interesting." Derek said. He waved off the pancakes and instead opted for some eggs and more meat.

"I had an interesting night. Talen and I had wonderful conversations." Leliana said, thanking Leto for the breakfast.

"That's good. So Eren, what are we going to do now? I know we'll be leaving but where are we going to go after this?"

"Redcliffe is the closest ally to us according to the roads. Alistair should be happy to hear that."

"Happy to hear what now?" Alistair joined us and took the other seat next to me.

"Our next destination is Redcliffe." Derek mumbled. Alistair's face brightened considerably.

"That means that all of you will meet Arl Eamon. He's a like father to me you know."

"Time to pack our bags huh? And none too soon." Derek said.

"Are you going to say goodbye to your sister?" I asked.

"Yep and also pay my mother a visit."

"You never mentioned your mother." Eren said.

"That's because she died. I might as well pay respects to the one who birthed me. Knowing her, she still wouldn't like all the attention we were getting. She was a jealous person." Derek said.

"Then the faster we pack, the faster we can travel." Eren said, getting up and going to his room.

"Well I'm going to see if I can get a few general shirts to get. All my outfits were burned." I said. I gave a short wave and headed out. I'll admit I was going to miss this place. It was easy to live here but I know eventually my guilt for the casteless would get to me. At least Bhelen will be able to give them real work. I went down the stairs into the Commons. I had to find a tailor. I passed by a few dwarves that waved. I found one in a small alleyway.

"Hello, I was wondering if you had a few shirts in my size." The tailor was a young girl with wide green eyes.

"Oh I don't think so my lady. May I take your measurements?"

"Oh, it's just that me and the Grey Wardens are about to take our leave. I don't think you'll be able to make anything in such a short amount of time."

"Please don't underestimate me my lady." She grabbed the measuring tape and made me stand up straight. She got what she needed. I ordered my usual black outfit, two pairs. She assured me that they would be done before I left. So I got out and loitered in the Commons. It was interesting to see what they all had. I walked around a few times, wasting daylight before I saw Leto running toward me.

"Oh I was worried you were leaving at this instant. Please, you must come with me my lady." Leto said. I shrugged and did. He led me up the stairs to go back into the Diamond Quarter.

"I didn't realize how popular your book became. We had to make a separate account for the money."

"Wait what?"

"Oh the Assembly opened an account for you to store the money of your book selling." Leto said.

"How much money are we talking about here?"

"Hmm, from what I gathered it totals almost to 30 sovereigns my lady." My eyes bugged out.

"30?! That's a lot of money! How many people bought the damn thing?"

"Nearly all the nobles my lady. Not only that, Terol said for every dish they buy that is your recipe, they put some more into your account. It's not just your book, it's your food." Leto said.

"Woah. Can I take out some money?"

"It is yours my lady." Leto said. We were in front of the Assembly Hall. We entered and the steward was there.

"Nia." He nodded.

"Steward. Leto here said that there was an account in my name?"

"Yes. From the business of your book, we had to open a separate account for you." I nodded and thought about it. It would be stupid carrying that amount of money on me.

"I would like to make a withdrawal of 4 sovs and 100 silvers please." The Steward nodded and went through the hall. He came back quickly with the money in a small pouch. I added it to my own.

"Also transfer all the money to the Grey Warden's account if you have one. Whenever my account reaches 30 sovereigns again, transfer them the same way please."

"My lady?" Leto wondered.

"I know eventually they're going to use it for something with the Deep Roads and they'll need all the help they can."

"It will be done." The Steward said. I bowed and thanked him.

"Thanks for letting me know Leto."

"But why did you transfer all that money my lady? If you don't mind me asking."

"I don't need that much money Leto. I don't plan on using it either. There isn't much I really need besides necessities. But the Grey Wardens will eventually regain their numbers here in Ferelden. Then they'll be stationed here in Orzammar again. When that happens, I want them to have some money to fall back on. So all the money for the book will go to their account and they'll use it as they see fit."

"You are a very kind woman, my lady."

"I try Leto. So I'm going to go to the Commons and check on that tailor to see if she made my outfits. If Eren is looking for me, tell him that ok?"

"Yes my lady." I didn't think that they would finish with my outfits that fast. It was only a few hours but as soon as I walked through the door, she piled the clothes right in front of me.

"Damn, you were right, I shouldn't have underestimated you." She smiled and I paid her. I got out and made my way back into the Diamond Quarter. Once I went through the door, there were packs against the wall near the doors.

"There you are. We were wondering when you would be back." Wynne said, coming near me. "Here, I made you a cloak to tide against the cold." It was a dark green and felt extremely warm.

"Oh thank you!" I put it on. It even had a hood.

"Oh here, you put this over your head and there are also some buttons down here." Wynne said. It actually brought a tear to my eye the way she was fussing over me. It reminded me of my mom. She attached the buttons and I was pretty much covered besides my legs. "Oh why are you crying?"

"Heh, sorry about that, you reminded me of my mom is all. I'm fine." I said, wiping my eyes.

"You will find your family again Nia." Wynne said with a warm smile, patting my shoulder. I nodded. "Now grab your bags. Derek and Eren are already outside getting Lily ready."

"Lily?"

"Leliana's name choice for the horse." I chuckled, grabbing a couple of bags with me. Wynne put on a heavy shawl and followed me out.

"I can't believe we're finally getting out of here."

"It's to be expected now that we are done." Wynne said.

"Yeah. Now we're headed to Recliffe and then to the Dalish Elves. Then we'll be done." I said. Wynne chuckled.

"I don't think it will be that easy. After all, we will need to gather everyone in one place." Wynne said.

"Yeah but I could only hope that it will go smoothly you know?" We were through the Hall of Heroes. The guards opened the gates and we were greeted with a blanket of snow. The cold hit me so unexpectedly. I marveled at the sight. It was so beautiful.

"Wow."

"Winter in its full splendor." Wynne said, walking down the steps. I followed her, the snow crunching underneath me. I felt giddy even though it was so cold. I just wanted to run around in the snow and make snow angels. I couldn't thought, that would make me look weird. I saw the stable ahead of me.

"There you are!" Derek shouted. He was wearing a dark red coat with fancy embroidering.

"Hey Derek. Where did you get that coat?"

"This? Rica made it for me first thing. She said she didn't want me to freeze on the surface." Derek laughed. "Go ahead and put your bags in." Wynne and I did. I didn't see Eren anywhere.

"Derek where's Eren?"

"Oh he's talking to Bodahn and his son. It seems that they want to travel with us again down to Redcliffe. They're down the path." Derek said. I went out of the stables and saw a few more figures coming toward us. Talen, Leliana, and Sten are all carrying their bags. Leliana was braiding Talen's hair while walking. They were both in dark blue coats while Sten's massive coat was a dark grey.

"Whoa your hair is getting way long Talen." I said.

"It's the reason why she's braiding it. She said she liked the feel of it."

"It's extremely soft and has a nice sheen." Leliana said. "And there, now it won't get in the way of your spells."

"Thanks. Here, give me your bag, I'll put it in." Leliana did and he went to the stable. I gave Leliana a knowing look. She just giggled at me. I rolled my eyes. I learned the reason why she didn't accept Alistair's confession. I have to admit, I was waiting for it. I might be dense but I'm not that dense...maybe.

"So Sten, you ready? We're finally going to Redcliffe and that means we're going to find whoever took your sword." I said.

"I will not assume that the sword has stayed there. It could have passed hands by the time we arrive." Sten said. I recognized that sad look in his eye.

"If it did, then we'll just keep following the trail. I'll get you your sword Sten, I swear." He nodded and went to put his pack away. I saw Eren walk up the trail with Alfred at his side. He had on a cloak similar to mine except his was black. "So who are we missing?"

"Oghren, Zevran, and Alistair I think. Morrigan is already waiting for us down the trail." Eren said.

"Huh, I'll go get the youngin'. He's probably wondering if he'll fall out of the sky." Derek laughed and headed back to the Hall of Heroes. As he went in I saw a figure coming out. It was Zevran. I was looking at the sky hoping to see some snowfall but nothing. The sky was just cloudy. Zevran's boots made the snow crunch. He had a light grey cloak and was shivering.

"Cold Zevran?"

"How do you Ferelden's deal with this weather? Muy bruto este frío!" Zevran said, snuggling in his cloak better.

"Remember I'm not from here and I'm handling it well. Don't worry, give it two weeks and we should be good. That's how long our body gets used to weather." I saw Derek and Oghren at the gates. "So who's walking and who's riding?"

"I'm taking Lily. You guys decide who is riding." Eren said, getting the saddle for Lily.

"So this is what we're riding? Looks like a girly looking Bronco." Oghren said coming up to the group. "And why is it so sodding cold!?"

"Snow. Frozen water that drops from the sky Oghren." I said.

"Water from the sky? Peh, you sure you're not lyrium addled girly?"

"How about we decide who's going to ride in the wagon? We have a lot of ground to cover to get to Redcliffe." Talen said.

"Only a pansy would ride that. I'm walking like a real man!" Oghren said.

"Wynne?" I asked.

"I might have to impose."

"Then if you don't mind Wynne-"

"Yes I do mind Zevran. I would prefer it if you didn't join me."

I saw Alistair come out of the Hall of Heroes. He was wearing a cloak that was light grey with a small bundle of blankets in his arms. A mighty big something actually. It was something that was squeaking.

"What do you got there Alistair?" I asked.

"Oh well, it's a gift actually." Alistair said. A small, pink, hairless head popped out of the blanket, squeaking at us.

"Is that…oh it's a cute nug!" Leliana said. Alistair uncovered it and yes it was a cute nug. If you had a bunny the size of an large cat without hair, you have a nug.

"Good we'll need some back up food." Oghren chuckled.

"What!? No you can't eat him!" Leliana said.

"No one is eating the nug ok? Here you go Leliana. I hope this clears up any awkwardness we've been having." Alistair said, giving her the bundle. Leliana giggled as it beganto snuggle her. Talen came by and rolled his eyes.

"I can't believe you actually got a nug." Talen said, poking it. It tried to bite him and Talen glared at it.

"Aww! He's so cute! I think I'll call him, Schmooples." Leliana said.

"Come on, Schmooples probably won't like the cold so go with Wynne in the wagon." Talen said. Leliana smiled at him warmly and kissed him on the cheek. Alistair and I shared a look. He shuffled uncomfortably and Talen flushed slightly while rubbing his cheek in embarrassment.

"Well looks like I'll be walking then." Alistair said, clearing his throat. I looked at Talen and smirked. He gave me a shove and I laughed.

"Come on, let's go in the wagon already." Talen said.

"Coming, lover boy." I said. I laughed as he melted the snow with a small fire. So it was Wynne, Leliana, Talen and I in the wagon. Leliana was snuggling her nug while Talen sat next to her reading a book that Dagna had mentioned to him. Wynne was beside me, working on some gloves for everyone. I couldn't believe we were leaving, but here I am writing in my journal heading toward Redcliffe.

Undead, here I come.

* * *

**I've had these pairings thought out for a really long time, since the start of story. There is a reason why I left Alistair single :3 Also Talen and Leliana together? Awesomeness!**

**Shoutout to rain416 and R3d0x for following/favoriting this story!**

**PetalsofSin: **_Well I hope your friend gets a chance to read the story once you've shown them all of dragon age :3_

**Yes it was a short chapter, most of the traveling chapters are. But then it's going to be Redcliffe time, muahaha! :)**


	34. The Village of Redcliffe

9:31 Wintermarch 3rd

It's been a full day since our departure from Orzammar. We have reached the beginnings of Lake Calenhad. The good thing about winter time is that you don't usually stink since you're not really sweating so no bathing for now. Things have been calm for the most part. Bandits won't come out during the cold weather for fear of them freezing to death in the night. Bodahn and his son Sandal are with us for now. When we told them that we were headed toward Redcliffe, they agreed to tag along.

Wynne, Leliana, and I are all smooshed in one tent. It was a tight fit with all three of us but we had to so we wouldn't freeze to death. Wynne began making Schmooples a sweater. Having no hair meant that you couldn't retain your own heat. The guys tents were close to the fire that Talen kept stoking throughout the night. Morrigan shapeshifted into a bear during the night to keep her warm and Eren slept with Alistair in the meantime. Sten slept in the wagon, Oghren kept himself wasted, and Derek slept near Lily. Zevran was unlucky to have no one near him but Bodahn gave him a thick blanket to use. Alfred snuck in Zevran's tent eventually. Zevran wouldn't stop complaining about the smell of dog on his stuff.

We were also lucky having no snowfall during our travels. We haven't encountered anything so far besides the odd rabbit and bird. There's nothing much to say other than I hope that we'll be good during this winter.

9:31 Wintermarch 6th (Early Morning)

The last few days were uneventful besides some party banter. Oh and Morrigan almost froze Oghren because he was leering at her too much. Derek made us get up as soon as there was light in the sky. We're taking a short break next to Lake Calenhad so Lily can eat some hay and drink some water.

"I'm starting to recognize the forest around here. I say that we should reach Redcliffe by late afternoon." Alistair said. I turned the ring around my finger thinking about Redcliffe. Later afternoon wasn't too much time to prepare against the undead. Especially since it was wintertime and that meant the days were shorter.

"Is there any way we can get there sooner? My legs are killing me." Oghren said, sitting on a stump and drinking.

"To get to Redcliffe on the path we're taking, we're going to need to go up a minor hill. We'll be traveling through steep paths. It's the reason why it's going to take a while. Unless one of you knows a flying spell." Alistair asked.

"I can shapeshift into a raven but I would not take any of you." Morrigan said. How she has kept herself warm with the little amount of clothing on her was beyond me.

"You never learned how to become a dragon?" Talen asked. Talen and Leliana were spending a lot more time together these past few days. Besides that one kiss on the cheek, they haven't done much PDA. Schmooples was covered up in a blanket, sleeping on Leliana's lap.

"That takes an exuberant amount of time. Not only that, I would have to spend my time with a dragon at close enough level to study it. I do not want to become dragon droppings if something were to happen." Morrigan said. Alistair snickered and she sent him a glare.

"Do you think we're going to meet dragons? I here that they have come out to light recently." Zevran said.

"Besides the drake that we met on the road, I highly doubt it." Eren said, Alfred snuggled up next to him.

"I don't think anyone here wants to fight a high dragon do we?" Derek asked. There was a resounding 'no' through the group. "Anyway we rested here long enough, time to move out."

Wintermarch 6th (Almost fighting time)

So we are in Redcliffe. It's dark but nothing has happened so far. I would guess that the monsters are going to come out near midnight. I'm writing in the Chantry for now by candlelight. Time to write down what happened since our last rest.

We headed up the steep cliffs that were overlooking Redcliffe. It was extremely tiring especially in medium armor.

"Are we there yet?" Talen said next to me. Wynne, Alfred, Morrigan, and Sten are in the wagon now along with Schmooples. I slipped on ice but Oghren caught me before I went down the trail.

"Mind your steps girly or you'll be lagging behind." Oghren said. I nodded. I didn't feel up to talking to him since I did kill his wife.

"We should be nearing the gates." Alistair said. The trail evened out and I wasn't slipping or sliding everywhere. I heard the roar of a waterfall. "Can we wait for a moment?"

"Weren't you the one that wanted to get here as fast as we can? Why are you stopping?" Talen asked.

"It's just…well…I, ah, should probably have told you all this much earlier. With all the killing, saving people, trying to be Grey Wardens-"

"Alistair, just say it." I said.

"Alright, so everyone knows how I keep telling everyone that Arl Eamon raised me?"

"You're a bastard aren't you?" Talen said.

"Well, wait, how did you figure out so quickly?" Talen shrugged.

"But that isn't just it is it Alistair?" I said. He fidgeted with his armor and took a deep breath.

"Yes I am a bastard! My mother was a servant girl in the Royal Palace in Denerim and she died when I was born! Eamon took care of me before he sent me off to the Chantry. The reason was not only was a bastard but it wasn't Arl Eamon that…well he wasn't my father. My true father…was King Maric which makes Cailan…my half-brother." Alistair exclaimed. Even with the roar of the waterfall, our whole group turned silent.

"So you're not just a bastard, but a royal bastard?" Talen snickered. Alistair chuckled a little bit and I saw the tension roll off his shoulders.

"That's actually good I need to use that sometime. I…well, I just didn't want to tell you all because I didn't want you to give me any special treatment. Even Duncan kept me out of the fighting because of it. Truthfully it gave me more trouble than what it's worth."

"Ok let me stop you here Templar." Derek said, slapping his back. "I think I speak for everyone here when I say, I don't give a nug's ass who you are."

"Royal bastards are very common place in Antiva." Zevran said.

"And it's not as if you were the first one and you won't be the last either." Leliana explained. Eren got off the horse and put his hand on Alistair's shoulder.

"Look at it this way. You are just an unlucky fellow you that didn't die with the rest of the Grey Wardens. Welcome to the club. Now let's get moving, I'm freezing my ass out here." Eren said. Alistair let out a big breath and laughed a little bit. I gave him a shove and a fist to chest bump.

"You didn't have to worry about a thing Alistair. We are all misfits here and you belong here. Now let's get going."

"Thank you Nia. You know Arl Eamon married an Orlesian woman almost right after the war. He got a lot of problems because of it but he loved her a great deal. After that she made sure that I wasn't welcome and off I went to the nearest monastery at age 10. I remember an amulet that belonged to my mother. I threw it against the wall when Eamon came to tell me that I was being sent away. It was the stupidest thing I have ever done. Even then Arl Eamon came to visit me but I never gave him a chance. Eventually he just stopped coming."

"You were a kid Alistair being kicked out of only home you knew. You were angry it's understandable."

"I know but sometimes I just wonder if I would have talked to him when he came along. Anyway he's a good man, respected and loved by his people. If we get him to our side, he has a personal reason to see justice done to King Cailan. Now let's move along."

So we continued and crossed the bridge. That was when we encountered the sentry. He ran up to us, I think his name was Tomas.

"I thought I saw travelers coming down the road! I thought it was just my mind playing tricks on me again. Have you come to help us?" He said.

"What do you mean 'help you?'?" Eren asked.

"Wait, you all know of what's going on in Redcliffe right? You-You couldn't have just stumbled in here without knowing."

"Just settle down and explain clearly what's been happening." Alistair asked.

"Oh Maker…Redcliffe Village has been under attacked for the last few nights. We have been fighting…and dying. Everyone is terrified about what's been attacking us and we're all thinking that we might be next!"

"What is this evil that's been attacking you?" Alistair asked.

"I don't rightfully know. Bann Teagan knows more about the situation than me. I could take you to him." Tomas said.

"And why should we waste our time saving a village that is almost about to perish anyway? We are here to see the Arl yes? Then we should leave these people to their problems and continue on to the castle." Morrigan said. Oh man the glares she got. I'm surprised she just stood there unflinching.

"She is right. There is no need for an added delay." Sten said. Eren pinched his nose.

"Sten, in order to fight an army we are going to need an army. We have the dwarves of Orzammar and the Circle of Magi, but don't you think that added soldiers would bolster our chances against the Darkspawn?" Eren said.

"You are correct."

"Not only that your sword is in there as well. If someone knows about it and we let them all die, we might never find it." I said. Sten looked at me hard and nodded.

"That is still not a suitable reason to go in blades burning to save a small village that is already on the brink of death." Morrigan said, crossing her arms.

"Then stay here for all I care. Come, we are going." Eren said. The look on Morrigan's face was priceless. Tomas started to lead us down into the village. I kept looking back and I saw Morrigan sulking toward us. I smirked with humor. We saw the few men bundled up in warm clothing practicing their shots and fighting against training dummies. We go into the Chantry and you can feel the terrible despair on your shoulders. Bann Teagan was at the end of the Chantry, talking to a few of the survivors.

"Tomas is it? Who are these people with you? I can't expect that simple travelers would come down here just to converse." Teagan said.

"No ser. These are people who have agreed to help us in our plight. I led them down here to speak with you."

"Well done Tomas. Greetings, everyone. My name is Teagan, Bann of Rainesfere and brother to the Arl."

"I'm not sure if you remember me Bann Teagan, but I was a lot younger when we met…and covered in mud." Alistair said.

"Covered in mud…? Alistair?" Bann Teagan came to him and gave him a fierce hug. "Ah it is you! I knew you weren't dead, oh welcome back!"

"Yes, still alive for the most part. I've had a couple of close calls thanks to Teyrn Loghain." Alistair gave Zevran a glance and he just shrugged.

"Don't even speak of him as his slanderous lies of the Grey Wardens. He has been nonstop at trying to silence everyone who doesn't believe of the Grey Wardens supposed treachery and death."

"I should assume then that you don't believe in Loghain." Talen said.

"Of course not! He paints himself the victor, taking all of his soldiers out of the fight and letting my nephew die with those rotting monsters. It is an act of a desperate man but enough about that. You look familiar, have we met before?" Bann Teagan asked Eren.

"My father would often mention you Bann Teagan. I'm the youngest of the Couslands, Eren Cousland. Bryce was my father." Eren said.

"I'm very sorry to hear about what happened to your family."

"Don't, I'll worry about that later. We actually came here to speak with Arl Eamon."

"I see. That will pose a problem. Eamon is gravely ill." Bann Teagan said.

"I heard from Ser Donall back in Redcliffe that Eamon wasn't feeling very well but I just thought it was a mild illness."

"Unfortunately he grew worse as time wore on. The castle door remains shut, no guards patrol the walls, and no one has heard from anything inside the castle in days. I tried my best, shouting outside to gain someone's attention but to no avail. After the castle walls shut…evil…things started to storm out of the castle. We tried our best to push them back but many perished during the attack."

"What sort of evil things are we talking about here? Demons? Abominations? Darkspawn?" Derek asked.

"Maker forbid if it was darkspawn. No, the walking dead plagues us every single night. They are evil creatures that return to life and hunger for the flesh of the living. The more they attack, the more of us die and the more their numbers grow. No one has responded for my urgent calls for help due to the civil war. I know you have no reason to come and save us but I beg you to help us against this onslaught."

"Of course it had to be undead, those don't die unless you kill them in a certain way. So Eren, what's your order?" Talen asked.

"We'll stay and help this village." Eren said.

"Thank you! Thank you! You don't know how much this means to me. The Maker must have sent you all to help us. Tomas, tell Murdock about what has transpired and then return to your post."

"Yes my lord."

"The attacks have only been happening at night so we have until then to fortify our defenses. There are two men that I've put in charge for the defenses. Murdock is the village major who is just outside the Chantry. Ser Perth was one of Eamon's knights and is just up the cliff near the windmill. He has been watching the castle for any signs of communication. Any preparations for the battle should be discussed with them."

"You heard the man, let's go out and do what we can." Eren said. The 4 GWs headed out, Morrigan trailing after them. I already had my own mission to why I was here. I had to find Sten's sword.

"I can't believe all of this has been happening. These poor people." Leliana said.

"It seems that we always come when something really bad has been happening huh? You want to see if we can help them?" I asked.

"If there is a way, then yes."

"I wonder if I can be of use to any of the lonely woman here." Zevran said with a look in his eye.

"If you are, keep it away from the Chantry please. Leliana let's go." I said.

"Let me go as well. I also wish to help." Wynne said.

"Don't look at me. I'll be going outside and try to teach these welps how to really fight!" Oghren said with Sten following him out the door. Wynne and Leliana went to the people and started to tell them of the chant to calm them down. I went closer to the Chantry doors to see if I could find Kaitlyn. Sure enough I found her in the corner sobbing quietly.

"Are you ok?"

"Oh I'm sorry, am I crying too loud? I'll try to cry quieter."

"No, I just want to see if there's anything I could do to help. Do you want to tell me?" Kaitlyn bit her lip and her whole body shook as she cried.

"Those…those things! They took my mother away! I just…I hear her screaming…" Kaitlyn harshly whispered. "I hear her screams whenever I close my eyes, in the walls, everywhere. Then…then my brother Bevin…he said that he'll look for her! Please you have to find him! Don't let him go near the castle! You have to stop him!" Kaitlyn said as she grabbed me. She became hysterical and literally sobbed in my lap.

"I'll look for him, don't worry." Kaitlyn sobbed a weak thank you. I grabbed a nearby blanket and covered her while she still sobbed. I went toward Leliana and explained to her what Kaitlyn told me.

"Then let's go find him."

"I have a feeling that he didn't go to the castle. Let's look through the houses." I said. We went out. Sten and Oghren were going through maneuvers with some of the men with greatswords or battle axes. The 4 GWs weren't around. So us three went to the houses that were built over the water. It was really quiet throughout. Soon I came into the house I knew was Kaitlyn's.

"Are you sure we'll find him here?" Leliana asked.

"Call it a gut feeling." I said and I opened the door. It was a small house and as soon as I entered what looked to be a room I heard shuffling in the closet.

"Is someone there?" Leliana said.

"Go away! This isn't your home! It's my home! I-I'll kick you for trespassing."

"Young man you come out of that closet this instant!" Wynne scolded him.

"I…I…yes ma'am." Bevin came out with a sheepish look on his face. "Did…did my sister send you? I won't go back to the Chantry! All they do is just cry and cry and do nothing! I came out here to…to face the evil things! I'm no coward!"

"Then why were you hiding in the closet then?" I asked.

"I…I heard you coming and…I ran into the closet. That wasn't very brave of me I guess."

"Child go to the chantry, your sister is worried sick." Wynne said. Bevin fidgeted for a bit.

"Is there something on your mind?"

"What? Oh it's just…"

"What is it Bevin?" Leliana asked.

"There is a chest upstairs in our room. Grandfather said that when I grow older that he would let me have it but…I lost the key when we were running toward the Chantry. I tried looking around the house but I couldn't find it. I wanted to wield it to defeat the evil things."

"If we find this key can we use the sword to fight the evil things?" I asked.

"If you can, I tried looking everywhere but maybe you'll have better luck. I…I should go." Bevin said, running out of the house. We all looked at each other.

"So anyone up for a scavenger hunt?" I said.

"Let's look around for a bit. If we can't find it then we are to leave." Wynne said.

"Fair enough." Leliana said. We started to look around but it wasn't on the floor or near the oven. I started to think about where a key could be when I saw a glint on the ceiling.

"Hey Wynne? I think someone threw it up."

"What? Oh, well that won't be too hard to get down." Wynne said. She focused on the key with her staff and it dislodged from the ceiling, falling on the ground. I grabbed it and went up the stairs to find the chest. It wasn't that big of a room and the chest was in plain sight. I opened it and saw the Green Blade. I touched it and it felt oddly warm like someone was using it recently.

"That is a sword of well make and of Dalish Origin it seems like from the carvings at the hilt." Leliana explained.

"We can probably use it against the undead that will plague this village if we give it to a soldier but we have spent enough time here. We must help with the preparations as well." Wynne said.

"One more thing. Sten's sword is somewhere around here held by a dwarf and I'm going to find it." I said. "Here Wynne, give this to Alistair or Eren. There are a few run slots in case Bodahn is still here. Leliana, you up for some breaking and entering?"

"Let's go." She giggled. Wynne went ahead with the sword and I found the house in the center that belonged to Dwyn. I knew that I didn't have the persuasion to convince him for the army. I just wanted the sword.

"This is it. Go ahead and open the lock."

"You aren't going to knock first?"

"Nope."

"You are becoming more brazen."

"Well you taught me well." Leliana fiddled with the lock before I heard it open. I opened the door and Dwyn was there with his two bodyguards.

"And what in the name of stone are you doing here? You opened my lock for a reason, you better make sure it's worth it." Dwyn said.

"Well I know we need experience to fight against the undead and more people are going to come here to pester you but I got a solution for that." I said.

"And what is that?"

"You purchased a Qunari sword from a merchant. I'm here to get that sword. The Qunari that wielded it is still alive mind you. Either you give that sword to me, or I'll mention it to him that you have it." Dwyn sighed.

"I knew that sword would be too much trouble. Here. This is the key to open the chest in the room. Get it, get out, and leave me alone."

"Thanks." I nodded to Leliana who followed me. It was a pretty big chest and inside was Asala. I did a small fist pump and grabbed the sword. We went out and headed to where Sten and Oghren were training the village men. I had to hug the sword to carry it, the thing was damn heavy.

"Sten, I found something for you." He looked at me and his eyes widened. I gave the sword to him and he gripped it with both hands.

"Strange…I had almost forgotten how it feels, completion. You have surprised me yet again, to have found a single lost blade in a country torn with war. It is as if you were an ashkaari, a being who seeks."

"You're welcome Sten."

"I have no ways to thank you even if I did know how. With this I can finally report back to the Arishok but my report would be more detailed if I stayed and fought the blight." Sten said. He actually did smile as well.

"That would be awesome." I said with a fist to chest bump.

"Thank you…Kadan."

"What does that mean?"

"It means many things but in your words it would be a term for close friends or loved ones."

"That is so cool. Can you teach me a bit of your language? It's called Qunlat right?"

"You are very well versed. I will teach you but first we must teach these callow soldiers how it is to fight."

"Yep." I said. We gathered all the soldiers in one field. I overheard that Eren agreed to find the blacksmith's daughter. He was working on all of the armor.

"So I'm guessing that all of you are the fighters then?" I said. There were a group of 17 men. They were of range from young to old. "Oghren what can you tell me about them?"

"Most don't have experience fighting let alone how to use weapons. I keep trying to tell them how but they aren't up for Oghren's drills." He said, spitting on the ground.

"What are the weapons we have right now?"

"Numerous shields and swords, a few axes, hammers, some maces, and daggers. Bows are the thing around this village apparently." Oghren said.

"It's just hard to take him seriously since Dwyn doesn't care whether we all die or not." A young boy said.

"Then you'll just have to listen to me then and my big friend here." I said, patting Sten's shoulder. He crossed his arms and looked down at them. "Bann Teagan has told me that we have been fighting the walking dead. Who here has had personal experience with them?" About 5 raised their hands. "And how did you go about fighting them?"

"I used a sword and shield but they just keep coming. They bite as well and their hold is strong ma'am."

"I used an axe to behead a few of them and they stopped."

"You see? That's the key. We all go into the fade to dream and how do we dream? With our brains. When a demon comes and possesses a body, living or dead, its main connection is through our head. If you manage to crush it or sever it, then you cut their connection. A living thing can bleed but these do not. Swords are good for cutting but I recommend blunt weapons such as a mace or axe. Those can easily crack open their skulls and render them useless. Those who have enough strength take a battle axe or hammer. Oghren, if you can show us a beheading?"

Oghren walked up to a training post and grabbed his axe. He swung with his momentum and chopped off the upper chunk.

"I'm not saying you'll be able to do this every single time in battle, but you can hold them back. Everyone get a weapon you're comfortable with and start practicing."

"And what about you with your flimsy daggers?" I smiled at the guy who made the comment. I took out my knuckle daggers and rushed him. I tripped him, straddled him and punched the ground next to his head. I made a great indent through the snow.

"My daggers might be flimsy but they are far from useless. I have tons more experience fighting that you will ever have. Now, any more questions? Because the next one will face his sword." I said, gesturing toward Sten. Everyone just jumped on the weapons and started to train. "Sten, which ones have you seen that are really good with a bow?"

"There are but five of those."

"Go ahead and pull them away from the training." The 5 in front of me were about my age or maybe a bit older.

"Is there something you want ma'am?"

"Sten told me you all are the best when it comes to using the bow. Although it's highly unlikely that you'll be able to kill an undead with an arrow, there is something you can do. You can stop undead. What you guys need to train is to aim at the feet. Undead are probably still fleshy thanks to the cold weather. If you get their feet, you can stop them before they can get someone down. You might not think it's an important job, but you can save someone's life. Make sure you have an axe and shield but only switch to them once the undead are near you. Now practice, aim at the feet."

"So you're putting them in their place?" Eren said, coming up next to me.

"I'm trying to help. How goes it on your end?"

"Not bad. Leliana snooped around the general market and found some oil we could use. We got morale up with Ser Perth and also making the soldiers drunk in the tavern. Hopefully all the armor will be fixed by the time night falls. I'm surprised Owen the blacksmith works as fast as he does. We've done all that we've can besides enlist the dwarf that they told us about but Leliana told us not to go near him."

"So we've done all that we could then?"

"Yes. You'd better get some sleep. The undead don't come until later at night."

"But where? I really don't want to sleep in the Chantry."

"Just take one of the homes. I think Zevran already took one. I'll show you." Eren and I left the training grounds and went through the houses but we heard the sounds coming from there before we opened the door.

"Soooo I'm guessing we go to another place since Zevran is busy?"

"Andraste's flaming sword, I didn't mean for you to hear that." I laughed while Eren seemed to get flustered.

"Don't worry about it. Well this place seems empty. I'll take a nap here in the mean time before we go out ok?" Eren agreed and went out to help some more.

So here I am. Now that I got all this down, I should go out with the others. We don't know when these things are going to come.

* * *

**Nothing much to say except the next couple of chapters are some of my favorite :3**

**Shout out to PhaseShiftX, phoebus1991, Sovereign X22, Eliphas-Chaos, and mus0u for favoriting/following this story! :D**

**PetalsofSin: **_There's some foreshadowing in there_ though...  
**EG: **_Thanks you :3_

**Nothing shows greater love for a story than a review, be it a 'please update' or 'awesome chapter' so please review!**


	35. Attack of the Dead!

Wintermarch 7th Early Morning

We're taking a small rest after the attack yesterday. I'm dead tired, get it? God that was a horrible pun, why am I still doing that? Anyway, time to write what happened.

We were all stationed at the two points where the undead would come. They came from the castle gates and the lake. Ser Perth and his knights are stationed at the windmill, Murdock was stationed at the lake houses. Leliana secured the elf that was supposed to write to Loghain to join the army. Talen, Eren, Alistair, Leliana, and Alfred were at the windmill site. Wynne, Sten, Oghren, Derek, Zevran, and I were in front of the Chantry. Morrigan said she'll help here and there, big surprise on that. I think Eren eventually coerced her into it, I'm not sure. My opinion of her has lowered already. Not that I really trusted her too much to begin with. I've played so much of dragon age but I was never really attached to Morrigan. Anyway, I'm rambling again. Murdock said that the undead always went for the Chantry in great numbers so the hard hitters were here.

My breath was coming out in puffs and the bonfire behind us going strong. I twirled my daggers. The villagers behind me clad head to toe in armor. The undead bite a lot. It would be best if they didn't get eaten while they were alive.

"Afraid girly?" Oghren said, swinging around his axe.

"No. I'm worried not scared. I hope everyone at the windmill will be alright." I said.

"They'll be fine. Talen is becoming an excellent healer. I have always seen his potential in the creation tree but he never wanted it." I let out a breath and kicked the snow. That was when I heard the warning bells. The people who were outside clamored inside the Chantry, screaming and shouting in fear. It made me feel more nervous.

"This is the time were we protect what is our home! We will not stand idle by while these creatures tear down our lives! Give them everything you got men!" Murdock shouted, rallying the men. They shouted in agreement and made a line to protect the Chantry. I took my spot and looked out into the darkness. Finally they started to come. I didn't wait for them to come to me. They came in groups of 3 or 4. The battle began. I rolled one to the ground and punched its skull. I heard the sound of a crack and it grew limp. More were coming out of the shadows though.

I heard the yells of battle right behind me as I tried to take down as many as I could before they reached the men. I knew that in game you can save everyone if you tried your hardest. I tripped as many as I could and saw that the ones using the bow were doing well at aiming at their feet.

Then I heard someone screaming. Three undead were trying to drag away a villager. They were too far away from me. I saw someone run after them and it was Sten who used Asala to cut all three in half. I did a minor fist pump before going on to attack the rest. The DOS team just barreled into the fighting to make sure that these undead stayed dead.

"You want a piece of me!?" Oghren shouted swinging wildly. We almost lost a person just because he didn't see where he was swinging.

"Settle down you stone sucker!" Derek shouted at him.

"Make me you old bronco wrangler!"

"I'll take you on right here you lyrium addled nug!"

"It seems that they love calling each other names, no?" Zevran shouted over the fighting.

"It's hard to fight sometimes because it's funny." I said, coming up next to him. Zevran didn't have too much trouble with the undead after changing his tactics to only aiming at the neck and head.

"Maybe we should also call each other pet names mi niña!" He said, grabbing an undead and flinging it to another two that came.

"Sorry Zevran I'd rather not. Pet names are only reserved for my husband or someone I love!" I rolled into two and bashed their skulls in.

"And you do not love me? You are breaking mi corazón!" Zevran said, stabbing an undead that was behind him and tossing it over him.

"Less talking, more re killing!" Derek shouted at us. So far all the villagers have kept up with us. Then shadow that came along with the undead started to disappear. They have stopped coming.

"That must have been the last of them. We are victorious men!" Murdock shouted. They did a number count and everyone was here. Wynne was exhausted so I led her to one of the houses we were renting for the night. After I went out Zevran was there.

"How is Wynne?"

"Tired. She passed out as soon as she hit the pillow. Has Eren or the others came down yet?" I said, heading out of the houses.

"They have. One of the knights almost died but they were saved last minute by Talen." Zevran said.

"Nia!" Eren shouted running over to us and hugging me. "Are you alright? They didn't bite you? Hm, it doesn't look like you have bruises." He said, grabbing my face and scrunching it up. I pushed him away and laughed a bit.

"I'm fine Eren, really. Geez, you're acting like my brother."

"I'm making sure. Hah, it seems that the shadows have already receded back into the castle. Talen has explained that someone opened the veil allowing demons to pour out. The main enemy is in the castle. If nothing else works, we'll break the castle gate to go inside. The Grey Wardens and I will talk with Ser Perth, Murdock, and Bann Teagan. You go and get some rest."

"You sure? Your eyes are bloodshot. You need some sleep too."

"Thank you, but I'll be fine. Zevran, if you touch her, I'll kill you." Eren said, poking Zevran's chest before going toward the men that were near the bonfire.

"I don't believe I've ever met him this protective, no?"

"I know its weird right? Anyway we should probably get some rest like he said. If all things go well, we're going to be going to the castle tomorrow. If what Talen says is true then we're going to have to fight more undead."

"Will you feel chilly this evening? If you do not mind, I will join you to combine our body heat."

"Zevran how many times do I have to tell you no?"

"Until you tell me yes. It has worked before." I laughed at him.

"Good night Zevran."

I got everything down. Everyone is sleeping and I don't blame them. We were up for a very long time last night. I think everyone was so relieved about how well the defense was yesterday, that they are sleeping that off. It's a good thing. I might as well take a few more minutes of shut eye before we go in the castle. Time to see who Eren will be taking.

Wintermarch 8th

Yeah I know it's been a full day since an update but a lot, I mean A LOT, of information was going on yesterday. Let's start off from where I left off.

"It is a new day! We survived the night with everyone who fought, we are victorious!" Everyone was outside cheering. I yawned as Teagan gave us a helmet for our troubles and the mother recited the chant. It has been a while since I went off without little sleep. I saw Kaitlyn and her brother cheering in the crowd as well. I went to talk to her about the sword and gave her enough money to go to Denerim. Hopefully they won't get into too much trouble.

"With the blow that we have dealt, and the Maker's favor, it has allowed me to enter the castle and seek out my brother and arl. Do not let your guard down and watch for signs of an attack. We shall return with news as soon as we are able." The people dispersed with smiles and shouts of glee.

"Makes you glad that we stayed to help right?" I said, shoving Leliana.

"Very much so."

"We have no time to waste. Seek me out at the mill and we will talk further there of our plans." Bann Teagan said, going up the path to the windmill. Eren sighed.

"I have a feeling that Bann Teagan is going to ask me to somehow enter the Castle. If that's the case then a few of you have to stay here to protect the village in case something happens while we're gone. Alistair, Talen, Nia, Leliana, and Sten. You will all come with me and the rest of you, rest but be cautious." Eren said. Alfred barked running off while the rest of us went our separate ways.

We walked up the steep path toward the windmill. The view was pretty since the snow covered a lot of the land. It twinkled with the daylight.

"Hey Eren, wouldn't it be better if you also took Derek? Or maybe Morrigan with her spells?"

"We don't know what's going to be at Redcliffe Castle and we need a rounded team." He said. We came on the windmill and Teagan was looked out to the castle from the ledge.

"The castle looks so quiet and serene from here. It's as if no one was inside at all. I'm sure you are wondering why I wanted to talk to you here."

"Oh no we already know that you have plan to infiltrate the castle." Eren just looked at me and face palmed. "What?"

"And they say I have no tact." Alistair said.

"Is this true?" Teagan asked.

"We figured as much but that's beside the point. What did you have in mind?" Talen asked.

"I have a signet ring that opens a secret passage into the castle through the windmill. I was afraid of mentioning it earlier because I thought that you would leave the village to its fate instead of fighting to protect it."

"I would have stayed Bann Teagan. I wouldn't have left all those people to die." Eren said.

"Thank you again. Now my plan is-Maker's breath, is that…?" I looked behind us and sure enough, Isolde was running with a guardsmen right behind her.

"Teagan! Thank the Maker you are still alive."

"Isolde? You're alive, but how…what happened?"

"I am sorry but I cannot explain right now. I escaped from the castle when I saw the battle was over but I must return quickly. And…I need you to come with me Teagan. Alone."

"I'm sorry but this just sounds like a trap." Talen said. Isolde looked at him and had the bitch face going on.

"Teagan, who is this…man?" Oh yeah, she stopped herself from saying elf.

"You remember me Isolde right?" Alistair said.

"Alistair? What are you doing here?" I could just see the dislike oozing from her mouth.

"These are the heroes that saved the village Isolde and I owe them my life."

"I am sorry…but with the circumstances…I do not have time for pleasantries."

"We didn't even think that anyone was alive in the castle. You have to have some answers." Alistair said.

"I…I…do not what is safe to tell."

"We know that there's undead walking so the fade was opened. You could almost see the rift from the castle if you can focus on it. So you have to have a mage in the castle that did all this right?" Talen said.

"Nice deductive reasoning Sherlock." Talen gave me a raised eyebrow but I chuckled.

"Oh…yes…although we have caught the mage…the evil continues. And my poor Connor! The death has taken a toll on my poor boy! I fear he is going mad. We survived but we could not leave the castle until now! My son fears at leaving the castle. You must help him Teagan! You are his uncle. You can talk with him and reason with him. I have nowhere else to turn Teagan."

"Do not worry Isolde, I will go with you."

"Oh thank you Teagan, thank you!"

"It's not like he has much choice." Talen said and Leliana shushed him.

"There is no possibility that I would be able to defeat the evil on my own but you all proven yourselves powerful enough. Isolde if you would excuse me I still have something to give to the Grey Wardens." Isolde nodded and walked toward the path leading to the castle.

"You know this is an ambush or something right?" Talen said.

"That is most probable but I can't abandon my family. Here is my signet right to open the door. You go in through the door and I will try to distract whatever evil lies in the castle. Whatever happens in the castle you must save my brother. Everyone else, including myself, are expendable."

"We will try to save everyone Bann Teagan." Alistair said.

"I'm glad I am in your thoughts but you must keep in mind the priorities. I must go now. We will meet later friends." Bann Teagan said, going to follow Isolde.

"This does not feel well." Leliana said.

"There's nothing we can do about it. We have to continue on." Eren said. I let out a sigh.

"So what do you think about all of this Sten?"

"It is a waste of time. We should have followed the woman regardless of what would happen and kill the enemy."

"And this is why I like you Sten, you're so logical." I said as Eren raised the door on the floor. We saw the ladder and took turns going down. We reached the bottom. This was the dungeons. It was musky, damp, and smelly.

"Hey you hear that?" I said, mentioning the growling.

"Those are undead!" Talen shouted going to open the door. There were three undead crowding one cell. Alistair, Eren, and I jumped to take them down. I rolled on the floor and took two down with me. I managed to decapitate one and Alistair crushed the other one's head. Leliana stopped the last one in it's tracks before Eren cut off its head as well.

"H-Hello? Is anyone out there?"

"No…this…" Talen came through the secret door. In the cell was Jowan.

"By Andraste's mercy…Talen!? What…I can't scarcely believe it!"

"Jowan…Jowan! You sodding bastard! Why are you doing here? Do you know all the shit that I had to deal with when you left!? They almost shipped me out to Aeonar just like Lily! The sodding mage prison Jowan!" Talen shouted, grabbing at the cell bars. Poor Jowan was grabbing at the walls.

"They…they sent Lily to…to Aeonar?"

"Yeah they did all because you had to go and learn to blood magic."

"Pot calling the kettle black Talen, you're a blood mage now too." Alistair said.

"What!?" Jowan exclaimed. "You were always the one that said blood magic is an automatic possession and that all blood mages should be killed! You are such a hypocrite!"

"I didn't learn by consorting with a demon unlike some people I know! I was taught by a powerful apostate. You know what else? My blood magic can actually heal people, does yours do that? No!" Talen said, punching at the cell.

"I think we're getting off track here." I said. Talen huffed, crossed his arms and faced the wall.

"So you must be the mage responsible for all this mess." Eren said.

"Hah, so you have talked to Lady Isolde then you already know of my crime. I…poisoned Arl Eamon. He's probably already-"

"You poisoned Arl Eamon!?" Alistair shouted.

"I'm already getting hearing problems from all the yelling." I said to Leliana.

"But you did talk to Lady Isolde didn't you?"

"I figured it out that a mage opened the veil and that's what causing all this but we didn't know about the poison." Talen mumbled.

"It wasn't me! I wasn't the one who opened the veil! They imprisoned me before all of this happened. Then Lady Isolde came down here with some guards asking me to reverse whatever I did. I thought she meant the poisoning. Then she started to describe the walking corpses and…had me tortured to see it was true but it wasn't me! It was…it was Isolde's son Connor."

"What? But Connor isn't a mage." Alistair said.

"He began showing signs. Lady Isolde is…a prideful woman and didn't want her son to be sent off to the Circle of Magi. He would lose all titles and Isolde did not want that."

"So she found you so Connor could 'learn' how to hide his talent? Tch, stupid." Talen said.

"Teryn Loghain found me and when he heard that Isolde needed a tutor he sent me to poison the arl. He told me that Arl Eamon was a threat to Ferelden. If I did this then he would settle all the bad blood between me and the Circle. All I wanted to do was to go back! And now I've been left to rot in this Maker forsaken cell. I've disappointed so many people and all I want to do is to make things right! You have to believe me."

"So if Connor is a mage then that means he could also be the one that opened the veil?" Alistair said.

"I only trained the boy a little bit of magic. Magic that isn't controlled can become erratic and wild. Sometimes the veil can be torn and that would allow spirits and demon to come into the castle. Powerful ones could possess the dead. Oh I'm such a fool, why did I even listen to Loghain?"

"Well at least know you learned one lesson for once." Talen said. "So what are you going to do about it hm?"

"All I want to do is to make things right and fix this. Talen…you and I were friends once. I know what I did to you and I have no right to call you as such but I beg you, give me a chance."

"You betrayed me."

"I know and I am so, so sorry but let me fix this, please."

"He is your friend, you know him best Talen."

"All men should be given a chance at redemption."

"But he is a bas seerabas that knows blood magic. If we release him, he can easily take over our minds and even summon demons. If we let him out, it would be unintelligent." Sten said.

"Whatever you choose Talen I'm on your side." Eren said.

"Same goes for me." I said. Talen bit his lip and clenched his fist. He glared at the ground for a good moment and let out a deep breath.

"I'm going to let you out. I know you think it probably thinking 'What then?' but I know that you'll figure something out. But trust me when I say that the first sign at mind domination and I will strike you down where you stand."

"I will find some way to help."

"Leliana, pick the locks." She did so and Talen opened the cell door.

"Come on, we got a castle to save." Talen said. Sten growled in disapproval.

* * *

**When I first wrote this chapter it nearly hit 20 pages and 7000 words so I split it into two. I think out of my Warden OCs my favorite has to be Talen. Eren is strong and a leader and kinda blah to write, well for now until...But Talen is fun, 18, young, snarky, but full of that young wisdom that comes with it. Derek is just an old man. You might not see him too much in this series but let me just say, I have big plans for that guy.**

**Shout out to DarkStorm00 and Wolfman-053 who favorited this story!**

**EG: **_Yeah I love the series too unfortunately I can't watch it because I don't want to give the kids nightmares accidentally -_-_

**Thank you to KrystylSky, PetalsofSin, and Sovereign X22 for your reviews of appreciation! They really make me feel loved :3 Please Review!**


	36. Sacrifice

Redcliffe Castle Continued.

"Are you sure that was the best thing to do?" Alistair asked.

"You did say that I was the one who knew him best. Jowan is a good guy at heart if a bit foolhardy but I wasn't kidding when I said I'll kill him. If you want Sten, you can do it in my place but only if he tries something."

"That would be wise." We continued. We saw the piles of filth in mounds and corpses on the floor.

"Well that would explain the smell at least." Eren said. I took out my daggers. As we reached the stairs to go up, the corpses growled. 5 came to life which was hardly a challenge. Eren and Alistair bumped two of them with their shields and they fell on the floor. I came up and smashed one, the other was set on fire by Talen. Leliana struck one to the floor and Sten came and took off its head.

I kicked one on the chest and the other jumped on my back. Sten quickly took it off and threw it at the one I kicked. Eren and Alistair stabbed through their skulls and the battle was one.

"Don't let your guard down and down get bitten. They can tear off your flesh as soon as they sink them in." Eren said, patting my shoulder.

"I know, I know."

"Let's go up the stairs and see what's waiting for us then." Alistair said. We went up the stairs and reached the first floor. The door was closed and we all looked at each other.

"So who wants to open the door to hell?" I said.

"I'll sacrifice myself." Eren said sarcastically. We went into the hallway and there was nothing until a corpse came walking towards us around the corner. There was only one but then two more followed soon after. Eren dealt with the first one and Alistair was not far behind with Sten. I kept back to make sure that nothing came out of the door next to us. With all this noise something was bound to happen.

But apparently nothing came out to greet us even though we were being extremely noisy. After we cut down the corpses, I opened the door to our right. 4 shades resided in there. Talen went ahead and did a cone of fire and I punched one into oblivion. Leliana was making sure her hits were not missing and Alistair came over to deal the last two.

With the combined fire and his steel, they all went down for the count. I breathed a little bit easier but I knew that there was going to be a lot more.

"Yeah the veil has been torn since demons are in plain sight." Talen said.

"Are there going to be more demons then?" Leliana asked.

"The possibility is high. Let's keep going." Talen said. We passed by the armory and Leliana unlocked it to see if there were any people in there. Unfortunately there were none. We kept going and an open door made us known to 3 corpses. Sten, Alistair, and Eren went in there to take care of them easily. We went through and I found it odd that the fire was going in that room.

We opened the door after dealing with the corpses and found a big group of them. 5 of them again. Talen went up ahead and did a cone of cold, freezing all into place. That gave us an advantage and we were able to shatter 4 until the last one broke free of the spell. Then Leliana did an awesome thing and made one of her arrows do a head shot, knocking it out.

"That was awesome." I said.

"Thank you." Leliana giggled.

Then more corpses started to come down one by one. It made it all the easier to trip them and knock off or smash their heads. It was a total of 7 that came running down the hallway and all we did was waited at the entrance for them to come toward us. Talen froze a few and Sten shattered them. Alistair and Eren made use of their shields and I lopped a head off. It was fun in my opinion. After the last one was finished, Eren made the group stop.

"Don't you hear barking?" He asked.

"It's coming through that door." Alistair said. We went through a small passage and there were four mabari feasting on a body. Foam was coming out of their mouths and they were snarling at us. We had to put the poor things down. Sten cut the most of them while Alistair did it to one. Eren was off at the wall. He didn't want to stain his hands with their blood.

"Does the veil tear also affect mabari's?" Alistair asked.

"I'm not sure. They are intelligent so maybe demons can cause them to lose their minds as well." Talen said.

"Let us keep going." Sten said. The hallway we entered was probably the servant quarters. We found many bedrooms and a resting room. The door to the main hall was locked and Leliana couldn't open it. I made my way down to the last room where I knew Valena was going to be. I opened the door and I quickly dodged the pot that was thrown at me.

"Get away from me! I won't let you take me! I won't!" Valena shouted, grabbing the nearest thing and throwing it at me.

"Whoa, hey calm down!" I said as she kept flinging me bags of flour, spoons and other miscellaneous items. "I'm not a walking corpse!" Valena was sitting on the ground while everyone else started to come to see what was going on.

"I'm so sorry! I was just so frightened. I didn't hurt you did I?" Valena asked.

"You almost did with that pot."

"My, my name's Valena. I'm the arlessa's maid. I…I was so scared about what was happening! I came into this room and just kept quiet! What, what happened? Is everyone alright?"

"You're Valena the smith's daughter?" Eren asked.

"Yes! You know my father? Is there a way out of here? Oh please, I just want to get out!" Valena said.

"There's a passage that leads out in the windmill through the dungeons. If you don't wish to travel alone, I could go with you." Leliana said.

"Yes! Thank you!" Valena said.

"You sure about that?" Talen asked.

"Yes. I will escort her out. I'll be fine Talen. Let's go." Leliana said. Valena and her started to jog out of the hallway.

"Alright we did what Owen asked at least. Let's keep going." I said.

"You know you are covered with flour?" Eren said. I shoved him along. We skipped over the main hall door and went to the other door. Of course it had more corpses! There were six and they all came rushing. The good thing was that they all gathered in one spot at the door and Talen did his cone of cold again to freeze them all. One by one we all took turns to shatter them. Only two were left alive and they were both decapitated by Alistair and Eren.

"I think we're getting pretty good at chopping heads off." I said, kicking a head across the room.

We left the room and went down a hallway that led into the cellar. Luckily there was nothing there just a couple things of supplies. We didn't stay there that long and went up the stairs to the courtyard. It was eerily quiet. Until we took our first steps toward the center. There were two corpses and a Revenant and a couple of skeleton archers up the steps.

I saw Ser Perth beyond the gates and was about to go open the gate when I felt a pull. It was as if something grabbed me by the waist and strung me along like a doll. I fell to the ground hard and just barely managed to roll out of the downward stab of the Revenant. It didn't much matter since both of the corpses managed to jump me. They bit at my chainmail and I struggled to get free while the Revenant came closer and closer with its sword.

"Kadan!" I heard Sten yell as he came running down the courtyard but I knew he wouldn't get here in time. I didn't panic. Instead I tried to calm myself down and focus on the power that I haven't conjured since the Deep Roads. I tried tapping into the power lying in my center. I felt it for an instance, that swirl of power. The corpses were set on fire by my glowing light and when the Revenant tried to cut me, its sword split in half.

Sten came barreling in and forced the Revenant back with Asala. I cut off my power as soon as it has done its job but it wasn't fast enough. I felt two powerful nosebleeds and my hearing was cut off as well. It was extremely scary hearing the sounds of fighting and then hearing absolutely nothing. I looked up as blood rushed down my face. The gate was open and Ser Perth and his knights were coming to kill the skeletons archers. Talen came rushing toward me and I felt the coolness of a healing spell. I was finally able to hear again.

"…almost there! Nia!" Talen shouted over the fighting. After the last skeleton archer was cut down, the others started to talk with each other. Talen looked me over and I tried to wipe off as much as the blood as I could off my face.

"God, I hate this."

"You still need more practice with that technique. I haven't found anything unusual and the bleeding in your ears and nose stopped." Talen said.

"So are we all going to barrel in the main hall now?"

"No, only our group will suffice. Are you healed enough to fight?" Sten asked.

"Yeah, I'm just going to look like a bloody mess for a bit." I said, standing up, wiping away as much as I could off. I was going to sport a bloody smear on my face for a while. I felt slightly dizzy but I pushed it away. Talen gave me a concerned glance as did Alistair and Eren but I shook my head.

"Let's keep going." I said. Ser Perth and his knights stayed in the courtyard while we went up to the door that would lead into the main hall. We opened the double doors and I felt my stomach sink at what we were about to see. As soon as we entered the main hall poor Teagan was dancing like a lunatic in front of Connor. Isolde was right next to him slumped in defeat. Connor made Teagan stop and he sat next to him.

"So these are the foolish travelers that you have told me about, Mother." Connor said in a deep guttural voice that shouldn't have belonged to a child.

"Y-Yes Connor." Isolde said with tears and fear in her eyes.

"What is going on?" Alistair whispered.

"And these are the ones that stopped by plan on reclaiming my village? The ones who killed my soldiers?" Connor said.

"Yes Connor."

"This doesn't look good." Eren mumbled.

"And now it's looking at me Mother! I can't see it well, you must tell me what it is!" Connor demanded. Talen came up to the front of the group and glared at Isolde.

"This is an elf Connor…like the servants we have here in the castle."

"Oh I remember now! I cut off their ears and fed them to the dogs! They were chewing for hours! Should I send it to the kennels Mother? So it could have its ears ripped from its head and to watch how the dogs rip them apart?!"

"Connor…please…please I beg you…Don't hurt anyone!" Isolde begged on her knees. Connor started to groan and hold its head. He whimpered a bit and the possessed eyes gave way to innocent ones.

"Mo-Mother?"

"Co-Connor? Connor can you hear me? Listen to me and-"

"Get away from me you stupid woman!" Connor shouted and used his power to push her into the wall with force. Isolde groaned as she stood up. "You are beginning to bore me."

"Please, you must help my son. I beg you Grey Wardens. Connor is not responsible for what has happened, please don't hurt him." Isolde said, her tears coming down her face.

"You're stupid to think that he isn't the one responsible here. He is the evil that we know." Talen said.

"No! Don't say that! It was that mage Jowan! He poisoned my husband, he summoned this demon! Connor just wanted to help his father!"

"You made a deal with a demon didn't you abomination?" Talen said, ignoring Isolde's frantic lies.

"It was a fair deal! This boy wanted to keep his father alive and I gave him the means to do so! Now in repayment, I will use his body as I want! My armies will conquer the world and no one will stop me at getting what I want!" The possessed Connor screamed.

"No one will stop him! No one!" Bann Teagan laughed.

"You will obey me and stay quiet, or do you want to know what happened to the other one?" Connor threatened. "Still there is no reason why we cannot stay civil. This elf will have the audience he wanted. Tell me elf, why have you come here to my domain?"

"We're here to stop you." Eren said coming forward.

"I did not ask you, you pitiful human!"

"It's like he said. We came here to stop you." Talen said.

"You came here to stop me?" Connor laughed. "You will not stop me! You cannot make me stop! I'm not finished playing with your small, insignificant lives! I will not have you spoiling my fun! Isn't that right, Mother?"

"I…I don't think…"

"Of course you don't, silly woman! After you took away my knights, all you do is deprave me of my sport! You cannot tell me what do to, woman! I want excitement and action! I want to see your lives hanging by the balance of blood and death! You took that away from me elf, and now you will pay the price!" Connor shouted, running off into the next hall. Bann Teagan and the other guardsmen started to come toward us, possessed by Connor.

"Don't kill any of them! Knock them out!" Talen shouted. The 4 guards and Bann Teagan came out us, swinging their weapons wildly. I kicked one in the groin and he fell to the floor. I did a hard hit on his helmet causing it to ring and he fell unconscious. I managed to evade a swipe and Talen froze him on the spot.

Alistair and Eren knocked the other two guards but Sten was having a hard problem trying to not kill Teagan since he wasn't wearing any armor. I jumped on Teagan's back and put my arm around his neck to make him stop breathing. He swung around and we both fell to the floor. The minute I felt him become limp I let go of him and stood up.

"Check everyone to make sure they're still alive!" Eren shouted. I put my finger on Teagan's neck and I found a pulse.

"Teagan is alright!" I said.

"Same for these two!" Eren said to the guard.

"The frozen one has thawed and is well." Sten said.

"Also the one you knocked out Nia." Alistair said. Isolde came from the corner she was crying at to our group.

"Teagan? Is he alright?" Isolde said. We heard a groan and he sat up. "Teagan!"

"I'm fine Isolde. The domination of my mind is gone. I am myself again."

"I'm so sorry Teagan I was a fool to have brought you here. I would never have forgiven myself if I had caused your death. Please Grey Wardens, my son is not responsible for all this! You all saw how there is still my son inside of that demon. We must find a way to save him!"

"Connor is no longer your son I'm afraid, Lady Isolde. He is an abomination." Jowan said coming in the main hall.

"You!" Isolde launched herself at him but I held her back. "This is all your fault! You brought this terror onto my family!"

"I didn't summon a demon honest! Please let me explain! Let me help you!"

"Help!? You want to help me after you tore my family apart with your demon magic!? After I gave you my trust to teach my son, you go and poisoned my husband!"

"Is this the mage you spoke to me about? Wasn't he in the dungeons?"

"He was. I had hoped those creatures already have killed you by now. He must have been set free."

"I let him free Isolde. He had some part of this so I thought that he could help." Talen said.

"I know I have to right to come to you like this, after I took advantage of you, your trust, and your family. I didn't think what I could do could lead…could lead to this."

"We can't turn away his help, not yet. If what he says is true and that Connor is an abomination…"

"But Connor is still inside, fighting whatever had taken ahold of him! He breaks through the possession, there must be a way to save him!"

"You wanted to protect him by hiring an apostate to teach him in secret and it led to all of this. I know you're a mother and you want to protect your children but sometimes we can't stop what has happened. You should have done the right thing and sent Connor to the Circle." I said.

"I just wanted him to stay here! I didn't want him to be taken away. If…if he learned how to control his powers, to hide them then…then he could stay." Isolde said.

"So what can we do now?" Eren said.

"I don't want to kill a child but Connor is an abomination." Alistair said.

"It would be best if we slayed it now rather than later. If he is still possessed there is still a chance he will attack us again." Sten said.

"He ran upstairs into his room. The violence scares him."

"No we are not killing him." Eren said.

"That is-"

"I'm not killing him!" Eren said. "That is final Sten."

"So if we're not killing him then what are we going to do?" Teagan asked.

"There is…a solution if you will listen." Jowan said.

"Go on." Isolde said.

"I can send someone into the fade where they can battle the demon and kill it releasing its hold over your son..."

"Isn't the demon inside Connor?" Teagan said.

"No. The demon met with Connor as he dreamt and is possessing him from the fade. It controls him there and we can use that same connection to battle with it and with no harm to Connor."

"Then you can enter the fade? You can kill the demon and save my son without hurting him?"

"I can't. I have to be here to control the spell on the other side. Another mage can then enter using the path I can make but this requires an enormous amount of lyrium."

"But we don't have lyrium so you need something else in order to make it work right?" Talen said.

"Yes, it takes life energy, a lot of it. All of it in fact."

"A life for a life." I said.

"Someone needs to sacrifice themselves." Talen said.

"M-Maybe I shouldn't have said anything…it's a stupid idea and not an option-"

"Then take my life. I will sacrifice myself to save my son." Isolde said.

"What? Isolde, have you considered the consequences? Eamon would never allow you to this."

"We have few choices Teagan. We either kill my son and the demon with him or I let myself be sacrifice to save my son within. The choice is clear to me."

"Blood magic? Are we seriously going to go through with this? Two wrongs don't make a right."

"And how can we even trust this bas seerabas to even uphold his word? What if he turns on us and forces the demon to the other mage?" Sten said.

"There is another alternative. We can also go to the Circle of Magi and ask them for the lyrium required for this and some mages." Talen said.

"But the Circle of Magi is two days away by boat. You will risk the lives of the villagers for 4 days." Eren said.

"They might all die if we are to keep fighting those corpses." Teagan said.

"Then the answer is clear no?" Isolde said. There was slight tension in the room as the GWs considered their options.

"Jowan…how long do you think it will take you to do the ritual?" Talen asked.

"Are you serious?" Alistair said. I bit my lip. I really had hope for the Circle. "We can defend the village and make sure no one dies!"

"Do you really think we can stay up for 4 days straight while more and more undead pour out every single night? The village is already at the brink of destruction Alistair. They won't handle another attack and we know this." Talen said. Alistair sputtered and then looked to the floor in defeat.

"Then it is settled." Isolde said.

"I'm leaving then. I…I can't watch this." I said. I already knew what would happen and I couldn't bear to see it.

"I shall go with you Kadan." Alistair followed us silently. We went out the double doors toward the courtyard and I sat down on the steps. It was quiet with the few chirping of birds and a small cold breeze. I felt the lump in my throat at what was about to happen.

"You know…the greatest thing a mother could do is save their children…but the worst thing that they can do…is to leave them behind…We are such hypocrites." I said, wiping the tears coming down my eyes. "At least I'm trying my best to see my kids again…but at the same time…I've gotten myself killed trying to protect Eren…so…I guess that makes me the same as Isolde."

"You are still actively searching a way to find them. The woman did not consider the best for her child and allowed all of this to happen. You are more thoughtful in your choices Kadan and it makes you more of a Mother than she is." Sten said.

"I still think that we could have staved off the undead long enough to go to the Circle and back." Alistair said quietly.

"Yeah I did too." I watched as the clouds overhead. I saw small snowflakes drop down. My breath was coming out in wisps and I was crying silently. All I wanted to do was to go back home but I'm stuck here trying to find a way out. What kind of mother did that make me?

I didn't feel the cold as the snow settled on top of me. I just cried silently until it was over. I heard the doors opened behind me.

"It's over…" Eren said. He came over and put his hand on top of my head. "They're going to start to gather the bodies to burn them. What do you want to do Nia?"

"I want a bath." I said. Eren chuckled and he sat next to me. He was also crying.

"She reminded me of my mother." He sobbed.

Teagan came out carrying Isolde's body. Talen and Alistair followed him back to the village. I cleaned my face of blood with snow and went with Sten. They got the boats and put the bodies there after Mother Hannah said their final rites. With arrows of fire they burned the bodies after being pulled away by the currents. After their funeral it was getting dark. Teagan invited all of us to stay at the castle. I got my bath and went to sleep. It was early morning when I wrote everything. Eren should be coming by anytime now to knock on my door. I might as well stop here.

* * *

**So did anyone think that I was going to take that route? Not everything is going to be sunshine and happiness in this story. Actually it's going to get worse but no spoilers for anyone :3**

**Shout out to MEfan159 for following/favoriting this story!**

**KrystylSky: **_The producers of the game actually meant for you to conscript jowan and there's a mod that lets you do it too using some of the dialogue that was in the original game. I forget why they took it out though. Jowan also had a companion quest as_ well.  
**PetalsofSin: **_Yep, Talen is the youngest of the group. Derek is the oldest at 32 and Eren is a year older than Nia.  
_**EG: **_It would be pretty cool if my kids were gamers but my step-daughter who is the oldest only likes tablet games. My other kids are only 2 and 1 so it's going to be a while until they get into gaming, if they want to.  
_**emilian65: **_Esta bien. Ya se que todos tienen escuela o trabajo en la vida. Talen se fue en el fade a peliar the desire demon. Nia no quizo ver por que la Isolde murio. :3_

**I love your feedback guys! Please review!**


	37. Traveling Part 3

Wintermarch 8th continued

I'm eating right now in my room alone. We got our next mission and that's to go to Denerim to find Brother Genitivi.

As soon as I was done writing my long entry, Eren came to my door.

"Nia are you awake?"

"I'm awake." I said coming up and opening the door. "Your eyes are really red."

"And so are yours. May I come in?"

"Sure." I went to sit down on my desk with my journal. It was almost to the end again. It's been a while since I got a new one.

"We have spoken with Bann Teagan on the situation of Arl Eamon. He still hasn't awoken and Teagan believes that the Urn of Sacred Ashes will wake him."

"Isn't the Urn a myth?" I asked.

"Yes it is but no amount of healing from Wynne or Talen wakes him. We need Eamon's word for our army. At this point there's nothing more we can do but search for a man called Genitivi. He should be in Denerim right now. He is a scholar who has been studying the Ashes for many years."

"You do know at this point Loghain probably has warrants for your arrest right? You and the others probably won't be able to go."

"Oh that much I know, I'm not a fool."

"Really? Could have fooled me." He shoved me and I almost fell to the floor.

"We are thinking of…well someone can take the wagon along with others to go to Denerim quickly. People who Loghain know nothing about." Eren said. I stared at him long and hard.

"You're thinking of sending me aren't you?"

"What gave it away?" Eren laughed. I groaned.

"So who else is going?"

"Leliana, Wynne, and Zevran. Teagan is offering Tomas to ride Lily with the wagon to Denerim. If you go at a brisk pace then you all should be there by 5 days at the least. I am thinking a week if the weather holds."

"So what are you guys going to do here while we go look for Brother Genitivi?"

"Help rebuild. It's the least we can do. Alistair wants to especially what happened to Isolde."

"Does Connor remember anything?"

"By the grace of the Maker, no. He had no memories about what has transpired and I'm glad for that. I would hate him to have the guilt of indirectly killing his mother." Eren said quietly.

"Like you?" Eren kept quiet and fiddled with his fingers.

"I am trying coming to terms about what happened to my family. I haven't properly grieved them and I will never have the change to even bury them. My parents stayed to buy us time and I will never forgive myself for leaving them." Eren said.

"It wasn't your fault Eren. I wish I could have done something too." After all I knew of the attacks but I knew I wouldn't have been able to say anything. Howe was a close family friend before all that happened. No one would believe me. Fergus was leaving so there was no way to convince Eleanor or Oriana to leave early enough so they could be saved. I had all the information in the world and was only able to save so little.

"We can't go back and change it. We must keep moving forward but if I ever see Howe again, I will make sure he pays for their deaths ten times over."

"And I'll be there with you." I said. "So are we leaving right now?"

"As soon as you are able. I just came here to deliver the news. We'll stock you with supplies. Brother Genitivi lives in front of the Gnawed Noble Tavern near The Wonders of Thedas. It'll be different without you around."

"Ah don't worry Eren. Just focus on helping the villagers ok? Oh and can you see if there's an empty journal somewhere? I'm almost done with filling this one and if you can get me something to eat?" Eren chuckled.

"Of course." Eren left and brought me my things. Now I'm on my last page of the journal and finished my food. I guess it's high time to get ready to leave for Denerim.

-/-

It's late at night and we're resting after leaving Redcliffe shortly after my last update. Oh and new journal!

The wagon was set up where we last left Lily at Redcliffe Village. Bodahn gave us a small discount on some of the supplies as well as Owen. He was extremely grateful that we found Valena after all that had happened.

"Are you ready to march off into the unknown mi niña?" Zevran said, putting his pack with the supplies.

"It's not really that unknown when I've been to Denerim before."

"You have?" Leliana asked.

"Yep. After Howe's attack we stayed in Denerim for a bit before going to Lothering. It's really filthy." Leliana laughed. "I'm wondering why we're not going with Sten or Oghren."

"Sten is much too conspicuous and Oghren…I don't think he's really the person for covert operation like this." Leliana said.

"Yeah you got that right. So we got everything and now we're only missing Wynne." I said.

"I am here and don't forget to wear your coats. It's still very chilly. We must bundle up or else we'll catch cold." Wynne said, coming up behind us.

"If you prefer we can join our bodies for more heat, my lovely Wynne."

"I do have the power to melt your brain Zevran and force it out of your nose."

"Ah progress!"

"Ah you haven't left yet!" Derek said coming up with the others right behind him.

"Stay safe Leliana." Talen said and she kissed him on the cheek. I looked away and cleared my throat.

"Take care of Schmooples for me."

"It's going to be quiet without you around Nia." Eren said.

"Don't worry about it. Once I come back I'll make some more of my soup."

"Everyone take care. We will be back as soon as we can."

"Take care Wynne, look after her for me." Alistair said.

"Oh don't fret Alistair, I'm sprightly for my age."

"Alright, off you go. The sooner you get the papers from that scholar, the sooner you can come back." Derek said.

"May Andraste guide your path." Eren said.

So off we went with our rider who was Tomas, the one who told us about the village in the first place.

"So you really think that they don't have bounties for our heads too? We've been traveling for a little over two months know. I'd be surprised if they didn't know what we looked like." I said, rubbing my hands together.

"I have already planned ahead and have brought disguises for us." Leliana said and took out some Chantry robes.

"Again with the Chantry robes?" I asked.

"It's the only thing that is readily available to us." Leliana said.

"You got a point there."

"Do I need to be an initiate or a brother? I would not mind being either for one would be forbidden fruit to some and the other is a wild fantasy." Zevran said.

"Only you would think that Zevran." Leliana said. I rolled my eyes and took out my ocarina. Leliana also took our her lute and we both started to play. We kept like that until it grew dark and we decided to make camp.

"So what are we going to do with our sleeping arrangements? It gets extremely cold during the night and we don't even know if it's going to snow later on." I said, eating a hard piece of bread.

"You ladies can share the wagon together. I don't think that Zevran would mind it if we shared sleeping quarters." I coughed awkwardly as Zevran leered at him.

"That is very kind of you Tomas." Wynne said. "Make sure to use plenty of blankets to warm you."

"That is not all we'll be using tonight." Zevran said.

So I moved to the wagon with the rest. The other two are sleeping while I took first watch. It's actually quite easy when you have a pair of two men grunting in the background. I can't wait until someone switches with me.

Wintermarch 9th

We're finally past the end of Lake Calenhad and we had to take a detour to avoid Lothering. Leliana got quiet when we went past it again. All I wondered if Flemeth's body was rotting or preserved. So far we haven't ran into anything besides a deer that Leliana expertly hunted. The good thing about the cold is that the meat will be preserved for a time while we head to Denerim. Nothing much happened throughout the day. There was a few times where Leliana and Wynne threatened Zevran. Luckily Tomas has been keeping him company in the meantime.

If nothing else happens I might as well skip the next couple of days. I'm not one for boring entries.

Wintermarch 11th

So I started Leliana's companion quest.

We came across a river that wasn't completely frozen and we decided to stop and refill our skins. It was ice cold and extremely clear. Wynne instantly boiled the water so it could be safe to drink. Then we were attacked. An arrow swished by Tomas and he reacted accordingly.

"We're under attack!" He shouted. He was the only one without a weapon.

"Get back to the wagon!" Leliana said, taking out her longbow. I heard a couple of barks. A mabari and a wolf came to attack us. I got my blades out. When they got close enough Zevran tossed an acid flask. They whined in pain and the snow got blotted with their blood. I came and bashed them in their heads. I heard two resounding cracks before I evaded a swing from a hammer. Behind the two animals were two Qunari's.

"Nia!" Leliana shouted behind me before her arrow found the throat of the one with the hammer. The other one sported double daggers. I evaded his attacks which was pretty hard since we were right next to the river. Zevran continued since there was also a mage summoning a fire spell. Wynne came from the wagon and started to trade spells with the mage. I had to focus on the Qunari though. He was quick with his two blades and was able to put in kicks here and there. I had to roll out of the way many times before he got me at the edge of the river. The water was rushing fast and I knew if I fell in I wouldn't be able to get out. I crouched and decided to enact a plan.

"Is that all you got you dathrasi!?" I shouted. The Qunari roared and ran toward me. The snow was slush underneath his feet. I timed it right and evaded his blades. He stopped short of the bank but I kicked him right into the water. I heard splashing going down further the river. I narrowly avoided another arrow when Tomas came from the wagon with his own crossbow. I ran across the ledge along the river and jumped over the trap across the bridge. The mage was already dead at my feet and Zevran was fighting the archer now. Wynne was behind us all, ready to heal us if we needed it. The main leader aimed at him when I came along and conked him on the head. The reverberating ring on his helmet caused him to fall unconscious. The archer's throat was slashed by Zevran and kicked into the river. Zevran came to the body of the leader when Leliana stopped him.

"Stop. Don't kill him." Leliana said.

"And why should I?" Zevran asked.

"These are no common bandits. Didn't you see their armor and weapons? They were of fine make and they were all well-trained. Nia, wake him up."

"Got it." I went over to the guy and took off his helmet. Then I smacked him around for a bit and he sputtered.

"W-What?"

"Tell me who you are." Leliana said.

"I'm surprised you didn't kill me." He groaned.

"I would answer her question." I said, my blade at his throat.

"Hah, I was told it would be an easy job. There was one objective: Kill the red-haired woman and deal with the others as we pleased."

"Kill the…you were sent to kill me?" Leliana asked.

"Who wants to kill her?" I said, my blade close to cutting his skin.

"I didn't ask since it doesn't get me anymore money. Someone pays me to see someone dead and then I go to the location to get my money. Heh, now I'll be lucky if I'm spared my life. I can work with you, if you would consider it."

"Speak quickly."

"I have no grudge against you. I was only paid by someone else who I know was already sent by another person, but I do know how you can find the one who put the hit on you. I have directions for a house in Denerim. That's all I can do and all I know." He said. I took the dagger from his throat and he rummaged in his pouch with a paper with the directions. He gave it to Leliana.

"Thank you. Leave. I hope to never see you again. I won't be so merciful the next time we cross paths." Leliana threatened.

"I know where my head is. You'll never hear of me." He said, picking his helmet up and started to walk away. Leliana let out a breath and rubbed her chin.

"Now why would someone send assassins to kill such a beautiful woman?"

"It's Marjolaine, it has to be."

"Marjolaine? Tomas go check on the wagon and Lily." I said and he went off. Leliana sighed.

"It seems that Talen hasn't told anyone which just made me realize how trustworthy he is. I lied to you all. I was not a simple sister of the Chantry. I was a bard in Orlais."

"This answers a lot of questions." Zevran said. I just punched his shoulder and shushed him.

"I came to Ferelden because I was framed, betrayed by the person who I thought was a friend. A person who I loved. My mentor and my friend. Marjolaine. She taught the way of the bardic acts. How to carry myself as a noble woman or disguise myself as a lowly servant and to enchant with tales, words, and songs. I served her, she was my bard-master because I loved her and because I enjoyed what I did."

"Something went wrong, didn't it Leliana?" Wynne said.

"I was sent to kill a man and to retrieve everything he carried to give to Marjolaine. I didn't know who this man was. I was given a set of instructions and a description. I hunted him down and found documents on his body. Sealed documents."

"And you as curious as you are opened them." Zevran said.

"Yes. I had a feeling that I needed to know what was in those documents. Marjolaine…she had been selling information about Orlais to other countries."

"She was committing treason and you thought it was wrong." Wynne said.

"Not at all uncommon in Antiva at least." Zevran said.

"You asked about it and you were worried that she would be caught and in danger. She changed her name from the documents and made you look like the one committing treason." I said. Leliana stayed quiet.

"It is as you say. I told Marjolaine that I feared for her life. She told me that these dealings were in the past and that is why they had to be destroyed. I believed her against my better judgment. I kept on believing until the Orlesian guards came and showed me the documents. They were altered by her hand to make me look like the one betraying Orlais." Leliana said, looking down and fidgeting with her fingers. I came to her and held on of her hands. There were tears in her eyes. She sighed.

"It's ok, go on." I said.

"The guards…tortured me in order to make me confess and reveal the conspirators. I had thought that all that awaited me was an eternity in an unmarked grave."

"But the skills you picked up is what ultimately saved you, no?" Zevran said.

"Yes. After escaping, I avoided Marjolaine and didn't seek her out. She would just have me captured again. I was furious! I was betrayed but what could I do against her? I wanted to confront her but decided against it. So I fled to Ferelden, to the Chantry and the Maker. My person was protected by her country and the Maker saved my soul. That is the real reason I'm here. No more lies between us."

"Don't worry my dear. You will always be safe with us."

"If you don't feel too safe in the night then I can-"

"Don't ruin the moment Zevran." I said.

"Thank you. Thank you all."

"So Talen knew about all of this?" I asked.

"We talked for a very long time in Orzammar. He accepted my secrets and promised that he would not talk to anyone about them if I was uncomfortable about them. He said to have faith in him and to not worry for he would stay at my side even when no one else will. It was what made me realize my growing feelings for him."

"But why now?" I asked. "Why would Marjolaine target you after so long?"

"I don't know. Maybe she finally found me and wants to finish what she started."

"Well we're going to Denerim. Maybe it's about time to confront her." I said.

"Yes. It's time to end this."

"Yep. Let's go. We shouldn't be making Tomas feel lonely." I held Leliana's hand until we came to the wagon and we continued to ride again. Leliana took a small nap on my shoulder as I wrote this entry. Looks like we're going to have an eventful trip in Denerim.

Wintermarch 13th

We had to stay at an inn when a freak blizzard came out of nowhere near Dragon's Peak. We are less than a day of travel to Denerim. Not much has happened after we were attacked. We did pass the Brecilian forest though.

It was a few days ago when I saw the beginning of the forest. Some of the trees were bare but I saw in the distance that a few held their leaves.

"The Brecilian forest is a bit of a mystery isn't it?" I said.

"The Brecilian forest has been there since before we founded the country. The land has seen many wars and there are tales that the forest hides numerous monsters." Leliana explained.

"The Dalish have said that if you didn't respect the forest, trees that can walk like man will steal you away in the night." Zevran said.

"You really think those are true? It might be that the veil is thin within the forest. Spirits and demons will possess anything in their vicinity." Wynne said.

"We're going to have to go in there to find the Dalish anyway because of the treaties. Too bad none of the Grey Wardens came with us so they can just slip in and ask them." I said. Though I know that we'll need all of them to tackle their problem with the werewolves.

"One man wouldn't be able to sway their group unless they are one of them." Zevran said.

"Well then it sucks that we didn't get a Dalish Warden." I said. After that the snow started and as we neared Dragon's Peak, the winds started to pick up. We were lucky that we found an inn with a barn for Lily. We paid for two rooms. We made sure that the room that had Tomas and Zevran got was not right next to us.

"Hopefully this blizzard will blow over once come morning." Leliana said, throwing another log onto the fire.

"We can only hope. Now is a time for rest." Wynne said, taking off her shoes. "Do any of you want a bath before we go on?"

"How many can it fit?" I asked.

"Two at once. I'll warm up the water." I smirked.

"Man if magic wasn't so feared we'd be using it for everyday things like warming up water. Too bad the Chantry skews the word of Andraste so they put leashes on everyone." I said.

"That leash is what keeps many people protected, Nia."

"You don't have magic in your world?"

"It depends on who you ask really. There is magic and various types of magic users. There is voodoo magic, wiccan magic, witchcraft and sorcery. In my religion there are even priests who can give exorcisms and banish demons from inside people. The thing is not a lot of people believe in it. Most don't believe in the supernatural and try to explain it away by using science. I believe in the science and it's what I go to the first thing something goes on but I also believe that not all the questions are answered so simply." I explained. "Not only that you can't actually 'see' this magic. Here mages can conjure up the natural elements in the palm of their hand. In my world you can't see anything. Only those with the gift of sight can see and those people are uncommon. They don't come out often into the woodwork because people would call them fakes. So in my world magic is present but people choose to ignore it or don't believe in it."

"You come from a very strange land." Wynne said.

"You don't know the half of it."

"Well the water is done. I suggest you two ladies wash yourselves up before the fire dies down."

Leliana and I relaxed in the bath even though we practically had to be in a crunched up position to do it. I was glad that I didn't take up much room.

"I have a question." Leliana said.

"Shoot."

"Why are you so short?" It was like a hammer to the throat. I groaned.

"I hate my height."

"Oh! I didn't mean to offend you."

"No it's ok. Well there are various heights where I come from. The average height in my country was 167 to 168 centimeters give or take. I was unfortunately born at 155 centimeters. Still I found people that were similar to my height. The men were also as tall as they are here. In my country it's a melting pot of various cultures and people so everything tended to vary."

"Oh your world sounds so fascinating. It's such a pity I would never be able to visit it." Leliana said.

"You definitely would have culture shock Leliana. Ok I'm good, pass me that towel please Wynne."

"Here you go dear. I set up your clothes by the bed." I got out, dried as much as I could, and got dressed. My socks were all nice and warm from being close to the fire. Leliana got out and we left Wynne with her nice soap.

"It's gonna be a tight squeeze but at least we're not going to be cold tonight." I said.

"Do you want some warm ale to help you sleep?" Leliana asked.

"Nope. Not even that roaring wind out there would keep me from my sleep." Leliana was reading while Wynne went to bed. I think I got everything down for now. Time for bed.

* * *

**Where I live we sometimes get really really windy. I still sleep like a log. I sleep through thunderstorms so yeah. Wow we're almost at the 40th chapter! :D I might also be taking a few weeks to rewrite/edit the early chapters again, eventually.**

**Shout out to kenn4eyes, nelspruit1997, leafygreen16, and jakethecap for following/ favoriting this story.**

**EG: **_My bro was the one who got me into gaming, best thing ever. I got plans for the both of them, just some that people won't_ expect.  
**KrystylSky: **_But if they conscript Jowan they'll have 4 mages on the team, that's kinda overkill. If one comes then someone has to leave to balance the team but we'll see.  
_**MEfan159: **_Yes I'm actually playing Eren right now in DA:O to transfer the save file to dragon age 2. I know there really isn't too many differences when you do but just to give me a background to work with once I start on my DA2 story._

**We're almost halfway through the story! Are you feeling excited!? How about you tell me in a review? :D**


	38. Marjolaine and 'Weylon'

Wintermarch 15th

Yes it's been two days since I last wrote in here. Let me tell you there's tons of information again. Right now we're already headed back to Redcliffe. We found 'Weylon' and Marjolaine.

Our travel from the inn was slightly difficult thanks to all the snow but Lily persevered. We changed into our Chantry clothes back at the inn. It was a bit funny to see Zevran in the clothes. We made sure to keep our weapons on hand underneath the robes. We came to the walls of the city and Leliana and Zevran worked their magic to persuade the guards that Tomas just happened upon us and decided to bring us back to Denerim. It worked.

Lily and the wagon were left in the stables near the gates of the city. Tomas opted out of our fun and decided to stay in case someone decided to get sticky fingers. He wasn't a fighter so we all agreed that it would be better if he stayed. We changed out of our robes as soon as we could and went inside the city.

"So what do we want to do first?" I asked. We were getting closer and closer toward the Denerim market. "We can either go to Brother Genitivi's or deal with Marjolaine."

"I want to settle things with Marjolaine sooner than later." Leliana said.

"Wow you are so hardcore Leliana. You better start working on some bombs Zevran. I have a feeling that Marjolaine isn't going to go down without a fight."

"Yes mi niña."

"Are you sure you are ready for this Leliana?" Wynne asked.

"I have to be. There is no better time than now." Leliana said.

"What do the directions say?" Zevran asked.

"The house should be near the entrance of the Denerim Market." Leliana said. I grabbed her hand and squeezed it.

"Remember that we're right here with you." Leliana smiled and squeezed back. We went through the double doors in the market. Even though it snowed like crazy, most of the ground was already slush. There was a lot of foot traffic even though it was winter.

"There it is." Leliana said. Her eyes grew hard and I took a deep breath.

"Well there's no time like the present." We went inside the house. We were immediately attacked by two Qunari guards with big mauls. Wynne did some quick thinking and froze them both. Leliana took out her axe and dagger that she sported but rarely used. She quickly shattered one and I pushed one to the floor and he shattered.

"A very violent introduction, no?" Zevran said. We opened the next door and Marjolaine was standing there with the small cunning smirk.

"Leliana! Oh it has been so long? You look lovely my dear." Marjolaine said.

"We killed your two guards." I said.

"You should hold your tongue, little one."

"Spare me the pleasantries Marjolaine." Leliana said.

"And skip your introduction, we don't want to hear it." I said.

"So business like your friend."

"You framed me, betrayed me, surrendered me to the guards, and was tortured. I thought that if I fled to Ferelden I would be free of you. It seems that I am not. What did I do to cause you to hate me so? Why do you seek my death?"

"Your death? Oh my Leliana. I sent those men because I know you were capable of. Those mercenaries, you can easily dispatch. They were sent so you can find me and see? Here you are."

"You should stop lying because we don't believe a word that comes out of your mouth." I said.

"Why are you here Marjolaine? Tell me, what caused you to come to Ferelden?"

"Truthfully? You have information that can be used against me. To secure my safety, I cannot let you be. Did you think you truly escaped from me? That I did not know where you were? Did you think that I would not stop watching you?"

"Ok we get it. You stalked Leliana for all these years to make sure she wouldn't move against you and when she left the Chantry, you thought she was coming for you. Get a grip lady, not everything revolves around you. Leliana left the Chantry in Lothering so she can help us against the blight."

"Oh you do not really believe in her? She tells pretty little lies my Leliana."

"Save it! I trust Leliana with my life so how about you take those words and shove it up yours!" I shouted at her. Leliana put her hand on my shoulder. I growled.

"It is better that you do not believe a single thing she's telling you. This warm, simple girl? It is a trick. She will use you."

"I am not you Marjolaine. I left Orlais, I left everything behind of my old life because I didn't want to become you."

"Oh but you see Leliana you are me. We are one and the same. You cannot escape it. You know no one will ever understand you. No one other than me. Your reputation of a master manipulator is because you enjoyed the game. You took delight in the power it gave you. You cannot deny this or change this."

"No matter what you say that part of Leliana's life is behind her." I said.

"Thank you. You will never threaten me or my friend again Marjolaine. I want you to leave and never interfere with my life again."

"You can't expect her to leave so easily. She will continue to harass you for the rest of your life if you allow her to leave." Zevran said. "She will also bring pain to more if you allow her to live."

"You're right. Marjolaine, it ends here." Marjolaine laughed.

"Do not think you can kill me so easily my Leliana." The doors in the room burst open and two more Qunari armored guards and two mages came out. Marjolaine had no weapons but faced us with her goons nonetheless. Wynne gave each of us a shield of magic. Leliana was a beast with her axe and Zevran let out a freezing bomb which froze one of the mages and the other guard. I came in and shattered the mage. The guard quickly shook away the ice but Zevran found a chink in his armor with a poisoned blade.

Wynne was battling the mage and hit him with a summoned earth fist. It hit him square in the chest. I came in and bashed him on the forehead, knocking him out. The guard that was fighting against Leliana fell over the table and she quickly stabbed her dagger in his throat. He gurgled to death while Marjolaine took her bow and got Leliana in the arm. She screamed in pain before Zevran going up behind Marjolaine and trying a backstab. She evaded and got him in the jewels. Zevran was on the ground writhing in pain and I rolled to trip her. I succeeded in doing so and Leliana jumped with her axe and got Marjolaine's shoulder.

She grunted in pain as the blood started to stain her formal clothing. She grabbed one of Zevran's daggers that was on the floor and cut Leliana's cheek with it. Leliana stumbled away and Marjolaine tried throwing it at Leliana before I pushed her out of the way. It embedded in the wall but the result of her standing so suddenly caused more blood to rush out. Marjolaine smirked at us, as she slowly bled to death.

"You will never escape from me my Leliana. This proves you…are…me." Marjolaine said, collapsing to the floor, blood pouring out. Leliana's eyes widened and she dropped down to her knees.

"I…I killed her…" Leliana whispered. I came next to her and hugged her.

"Come let us be off. We have done what we came here to do." Zevran said, groaning as he got up. I wrenched the arrow from Leliana's shoulder and Wynne patched it up. Leliana took one look back before we went out. I saw a patch of snow that fell from the room and started to use it to clean off the blood we had on us.

"I killed her. I killed Marjolaine." Leliana whispered as I cleaned her studded leather armor.

"Leliana…" She frowned and her eyes grew steely.

"Let's keep going. We still need to find Brother Genitivi. We'll speak later." She said. I sighed and looked at Wynne. She shook her head.

"We must keep going mi niña."

"Yeah." We were in the market now and people were hustling their goods. Guards were making their patrols in groups.

"So Wynne where's the Gnawed Noble tavern?" I asked.

"It should be…ah there it is."

"And that must be Genetivi's house." I said. We stopped in front of the door.

"We should knock." Wynne said.

"Nah." I just opened the door and there was a man there. A man that was pretending to be Weylon.

"O-Oh, is there something I can help you with?" He said.

"Actually there is we're looking for-"

"Brother Genetivi yes? Hah, I'm afraid he's not here."

"Do you know where he would have gone?" Wynne asked.

"Please don't ask me that. If you're here then you must have read his research. He was on the trail but Maker only knows where he is. I have not seen nor heard word of him in weeks. It's not like him. I fear the worse. His research into the Urn of Sacred Ashes might have pushed him into danger."

"Danger? I don't think looking for the remains of a long lost prophetess would lead him into danger." Zevran said. Leliana stared hard at Weylon.

"Maybe the Urn was lost for a reason. I-I tried to send for help but then knights from Redcliffe came looking for him and his research. I have sent them where Genitivi last contacted me and they have all vanished!"

"Have hope young man. We will-"

"How did you know they vanished?" I cut Wynne off.

"They haven't returned her o-or sent word."

"Are you close to these knights? I doubt that they would send a stranger word of their search." Leliana said.

"Is it so surprising to see someone worry when their own mentor has disappeared and to see more of them maybe facing their own death? I'm not a pessimist, but I can't help but fear the worst."

"We will succeed where they others have failed. Please tell us-"

"No. You will just follow them all the same and the same ill-fate will fall on you too. Searching for the Urn is a curse. A holy relic such as the Urn are not meant to be found."

"Our band of heroes are willing to risk it señor."

"So be it. He said to me that he would be staying at an inn near Lake Calenhad. There was some evidence and he wanted to investigate the area."

"Near Lake Calenhad?" Wynne said. I gave her a glance before focusing on Weylon again.

"Why Lake Calenhad?" I said.

"I'm not sure. After going through his research was that he needed to investigate whatever he had found was near the inn."

"You just told us that he spoke to you beforehand." Leliana said. My hands twitched near my weapons.

"You sound nervous my friend. You aren't hiding anything are you?" Zevran said, stepping toward him.

"H-Hiding anything? N-No. I have told you everything I know. Brother Genitivi told us-told me about the inn and that's all!"

"Us? Who is us?" Leliana said, her hand nearing her bow.

"Us? There is no…" Weylon sighed and pinched his nose. "I have given you a chance to turn away but you persisted. Andraste forgive me for I do this in your name!" His hands light up with a lightning spell and we all evaded out of the way. Leliana settled in the corner and I rolled near Weylon but he kicked me in the face. I grunted in pain while Zevran hopped onto the table and tried slicing him with the higher ground. Weylon grabbed the long table and flipped it. Zevran fell but Wynne summoned an earth spell and knocked him down. Leliana quickly shot arrows into his arms to hold him down. I took my chance and flipped my blades to the dagger part. I got on top of him and quickly slashed his throat. I cut so much I almost beheaded him. He twitched for a good part before finally letting out a gurgle.

"Is everyone alright?" I asked.

"We are all fine but your nose is bleeding." Wynne said, coming over and placing her hand over my face. I sniffled and wiped some of the blood with the cloth that fell with the table on the floor.

"Thanks. Search the house and look for real signs of Genitivi." I said. Zevran and Leliana went to the kitchen while Wynne and I went to the door to the back room. As soon as I opened it, the stench of rotting flesh hit my nostrils. I started to cough and gag. Wynne had the good idea of covering her nose. I gagged some more before the noise alerted Zevran and Leliana.

"Dead body." I coughed out. My eyes were tearing up from the smell. Zevran gave me a cloth to cover my nose. Leliana and Wynne went into the bedroom.

"We found something!" Leliana said, coming out of the room with a journal. I cleared my throat and she started to go through the pages.

"He has found a trail to a suspicious village in the mountains called Haven. He suspects that these villagers are protecting the Urn. There is a map right here to lead us to the village."

"We came, we saw, we conquered. Now let's get out before the stench of the body starts to spread." I said.

"So whose body have we just found?" Zevran asked.

"Probably whoever this guy was pretending to be." I said, tapping on the body once while we went to the door. "Now we can finally go back to Redcliffe, regroup, and then off to Haven to find the Urn."

"You do not really think the Urn is real, no?"

"Anything is possible Zevran." I said.

"I would like to believe of the possibility but we won't know until we go to this village." Wynne said. Leliana stayed quiet out of all this and I tried staying at her side the most. We met Tomas at the Redcliffe Stables after we got a few more supplies for our trip back. It stayed sunny for the most part. No freak blizzards for once. As we camped, Zevran and Tomas made their way into their shared tent. Leliana took first watch and I was to follow after. When I woke up to take my watch, Leliana was looking into the fire. I yawned and sat next to her on a log that we found.

"Oh! I didn't hear you wake." Leliana said.

"Are you ok?"

"I'm fine."

"Leliana we both know that when a woman says 'I'm fine' it means 'Something is wrong.'" I said. Leliana stripped off some of the bark and threw it in the fire.

"I've been lost in my thoughts about what happened in Denerim. I spent years in Lothering and yet Marjolaine thought I was plotting something against her. All this time I thought she trusted me but she never did. When she had me in the palm of her hand, to use me and control me, she loved me. When she couldn't, all she wanted to see was my death…I thought I knew her but the realization hit me today. I never knew her."

"People can live their whole lives behind a mask. Sometimes we just never know a person."

"I knew her tactics, I knew her ruthlessness but not how far she would go to attain what she wanted to see. She was self-absorbed and cruel. She took people in and introduced them to the life she led. Once she was done with you, she disposed of you and that is how she lived her life…Then after thinking all of this, I can't help but think what if we're the same? W-What if she's right? What if I am just like her? Maybe…maybe I should have just stayed in the Chantry." Leliana said, resting her face in her hands.

"You said the Maker wanted you to-"

"Maybe I was wrong about the Maker!" Leliana shouted, standing up. She paced in front of the fire. "I know you doubt me, everyone doubts my vision! Nobody believed in my vision but in the cloister I felt…safe. My life as a bard was forgotten, I felt peace. I didn't need to watch my back all the time for someone wanting to backstab me. Marjolaine let that consume her, it made her what she was and it will ruin me too!" Leliana said, hitching a sob. She furiously wiped away her tears and I stared at her.

"I…It's already happening. When I killed her, to know that I dealt the finishing blow…to see her dead in front of my eyes…It gave me the grandest satisfaction." Leliana said, clenching and unclenching her first. I went up and grabbed some more firewood to toss into the fire.

"She framed you, betrayed you, and left you for dead."

"That is no reason to find joy in her death! That is what she would feel, what she would do! I don't want to be like that!" Leliana shouted. She sighed and wiped away her eyes again. "The things we've done and we're doing…It exhilarating, it excites me. It's scaring me Nia…I…I feel myself slipping." Leliana whispered. "I went into the Chantry, hoping that it would show me another path. I thought that I was through with this life…am I wrong?" Leliana stared at me expecting an answer. I could have told her that she was wrong. I could have hardened her. I could have told her that she was right. I could have told her that believing in the good will save her. I chose the third option.

"Leliana sit down. I have something to tell you. When…when I was younger, I had an abusive relationship. When it ended I thought I was done with it but then I got updates from what was happening. He was going through such a hard time and I reveled in it. It filled me shame and guilt and I started to hate myself. That is until my husband showed me that here is no pure good and there is no pure evil." I took one of the sticks and drew the yin and yang symbol in the snow.

"Where I come from there is a teaching. Yin and yang. Dark and light. Good and bad. As you see each of this side has a little of the other. There is good in bad and bad in good. You're not wrong in feeling what you're feeling. We're only human. Whoever wronged us, we want to see them pay. We want to see them suffer but we always have a choice as well. Marjolaine is right, you can become her."

"So I-"

"Shush, I'm not done. She's also wrong as well. There is no harm believing in your vision. You can be cautious but not too cautious. You can hope and believe, but remember that life is always unpredictable. It's a balance Leliana that we all struggle with each other every day."

"I…I don't understand." Leliana said. I took her by the shoulders and sat her down.

"Think of it this way. You can accept both of these ideas. Yes we both liked the fact that our enemies got what we deserve, but that doesn't stop me from praying. I killed and…enjoyed it too but that's a part of me that I have to accept. Will I like killing to the point where I become a mass murderer strolling around in my loins? Probably not." Leliana did a small smile. "You see? Right there is the balance. Accept your feelings Leliana, but don't think that you have to stop with your vision to make the world a better place. Because there's no one else like you that loves the world like you do. I love the you that see the beauty of the world. I love the you that can hit an enemy square in the chest and stop them. I love all of you Leliana, the good and the bad and you have to learn to love yourself as well. Accept your feelings but don't let them control you. You control your own destiny with a little nudge of the Maker because what you believe in, and I believe in you." I said, sitting on my haunches, looking up at Leliana, taking her hands in my own. Leliana started to laugh and tears of relief started to fall from her eyes. Our foreheads touched.

"Thank you, thank you. That's…that's all I wanted. I wanted for someone to believe in me. I know…I know I relished in her death but that doesn't mean that my ideas of the Chantry are gone. I will say I was a bit…bored in the chantry."

"Eh, it's a life that someone had to choose. It's like this Leliana. Someone put you there in the first place. There are tons of Chantries in Denerim but something led you to Lothering, to us. To our little band of eclectic misfits and family. Maybe something was leading you after all. It's what I like to believe; there are no coincidences, only what is."

"Thank you Nia. I…I have a lot to think about…there is also how will I face Talen with this."

"Talen will help you with this. He's the perfect face for this symbol. He's a blood mage but he's not using it for evil. The good in the bad. I think if you tell him what I told you, he'll understand it. Maybe he already understands it. Come on, it's late and you need your sleep." I said. We both got up and I led her to the wagon where Wynne was sleeping peacefully.

"I will make this up to you one day."

"Take my duties as soup maker for a night and we'll call it even."

"I'm serious." Leliana said, staring at me. I just smiled and patted her on the shoulder.

"I know. Get some sleep. We got a few days of traveling to Redcliffe and we need you awake." Leliana nodded and we tapped foreheads again. I went back to the log and yawned.

After that night, Tomas worked Lily on getting us to Redcliffe as soon as possible. I had to remind him that Lily was a living and breathing animal. There wasn't much to write down besides Wynne threatening to peel off Zevran's face. All in all, a quiet day.

* * *

**I always thought that Leliana's emotions during the Marjolaine thing was...a bit detached? I'm not sure how to put it but I rectified it with this chapter :3 It took some work to make sure the choice I did wasn't necessarily hardening her. Hopefully I got through to you guys.**

**Shout out to Phygmalion for favoriting/following this story.**

**Phygmalion: **_Thank you. I actually want to go back and rewrite some of the early chapters now that I have a feel for the story, though when to do it is the question. And thank you :3 no one so far has really brought up the references so that's good I think._  
**_PetalsOfSin:_ **_You are always my most excited reviewer lol  
_**MEfan159: **_I do it so I can get all the scenes right, then I'll be able to port the save and make sure that I get all the stuff in DA2 correct as well.  
_**KrystylSky: **_Well if Jowan were to join it wouldn't be like 4 mages since he's not competent. So maybe 3 mages and a half?  
_**redrosemary: **_Yes! I made a reader feel the feels! Personal accomplishment on my part. Yeah Isolde was a bit selfish but she hated that Connor was a mage and didn't want to lose him. As a mother I could see her point, but she should have let him go and she paid the price. Oh I got plans for Leliana, big plans. For consistency sake, Nia will know the events of Inquisition._

**Did you like this chapter? Have any thoughts on the upcoming story? Maybe something you didn't like? How about you review and tell me? :D**


	39. The Village of Haven

Wintermarch 18th

We're at the edge of Lake Calenhad and only a day away from Redcliffe. Leliana's spirit has become slightly anxious from meeting Talen again. Who wouldn't be since the whole Marjolaine thing? Wynne and I have been making sure that she's been happy on the way. Even Zevran has been adding his two cents. When he suggested a three way between him, Tomas, and Leliana, she slapped him. He's been a lot happier as well considering he's finally getting what he wanted.

Haven. That's our next destination. Cultists, the Urn, snow, dragons, the high dragon, and then the Gauntlet. I'm extremely hesitant on visiting the Gauntlet for various reasons. The spirit there can exactly see who we are and I'm afraid. I'm afraid of what he would say about me. I can't let anyone know though. We need Arl Eamon to make sure that the Landsmeet goes well. That and also getting the amount of evidence to go against Loghain. Then there's also the matter of Anora. She will want to rule, Eamon will put forth Alistair. He won't want to be king though but it would be for the good of the country if they got together. Alistair won't have any romances to tie him to the life outside the crown. Leliana is taken, he hates Morrigan, and he doesn't like me in that way.

All of this is coming into headway and we haven't even gotten the Dalish Elves. We're already halfway into Wintermarch. We only have two more months of winter and maybe a few more weeks if it's a late spring. I'm crossing my fingers.

Anyway, it's time to switch shifts with Zevran. Night.

Wintermarch 19th

We arrived at Redcliffe Castle. I'm taking a rest as I'm getting my things ready to go to Haven. While I was gone, Derek, Oghren, and Talen went to Lake Calenhad so Oghren can talk to Felsi. They apparently hit it off again. Derek and Oghren might always call each other names, but they really are bros. I'm also feeling a lot happier than usual. Oren finally is here!

We were met by the Castle stable hands as they took our wagon and Lily away. Tomas already went down to the village. We went into the main hall where they called everyone into when we arrived.

"I assume your trip was fruitful?" Bann Teagan said, standing in front of the fireplace. Everyone else was standing in the room.

"We have Bann Teagan although we met with slight resistance. There was a man, posing himself as Genitivi's assistant. He had killed the real one in order to take his place and gave us false information about Genitivi's whereabouts. After we had disposed of him, we found Genitivi's research notes of a village which he suspects hides the Urn. We have also heard of the knights sent to that place…the man had said that they had 'vanished.'" Leliana explained. Teagan scowled.

"I see. So we are to assume that these people are not peaceful in nature."

"We will go to the village and attempt contact. If we are able to find Genitivi then we will uncover where this Urn is." Eren said.

"Good. It is best if you continue on your journey forthwith. I am sorry that you will not be able to rest for long after your journey."

"It's fine. I'd rather get this over with as quickly as possible." I said.

"Then it's settled. We leave for Haven as soon as we are packed. We will succeed Bann Teagan." Eren said.

"Thank you. Then I will leave your group to it." Bann Teagan said. I let out a sigh of relief as Leliana and Talen began to talk to themselves. Eren came and gave me a pat on the back.

"I'm hungry." I said.

"I will make sure to bring you some food later on but first I would like to show you someone." Eren said. I wondered who could it be. We went into his room and I heard someone babbling that sounded extremely familiar.

"And the templars were really big! I don't know how they can walk with all the heavy armor but it was so cold!" Oren was talking to a servant who was cleaning out the sheets.

"Oren!" I said. He gave me the biggest smile and ran into my arms. I twirled him in the air, both of us laughing.

"Oh look at you! You've grown! When did you get here?"

"I sent out a letter as soon as you left. I wanted him to be here when you got back."

"Uncle said I can stay here! I liked the tower but it was so cold!"

"That's because stone can't retain heat."

"Are you going to stay here with me Nia? Uncle said I can help re-buld!" I giggled.

"It's rebuild Oren. I can't stay here for now. I still have to protect your uncle because he can't do it himself."

"Hey."

"Papa was always better."

"Hey!" We all laughed and I smoothed out Oren's hair. He got a bit taller but was still small in my eyes. It filled an empty hole in my heart to see him. It was like seeing one of my kids again.

"Nia has to pack now ok Oren? I'll see if I can get a guard to take you to the village so you can play with the other villager's children."

"Ok Uncle, bye Nia."

"I'll see you soon Oren. Thank you Eren."

"I thought you'd like this but enough of this novel moment, we have to get ready for our travels."

"Morrigan is rubbing off on you."

"She-"

"Don't say anything, I don't want to know.". I'm in my room now, my pack is all set and I got some food in my belly. We're going to Haven. We marked it on Eren's map already. It should take us no more than two days if the weather allows it and also if we are able to find a suitable path. We'll be going through mountains so Lily won't be coming with us. It's going to be tough, steep, and perilous. I hope everyone will be able to get there ok.

-/-

"My feet are killing me! Are we there yet?" Derek said for the third time. I groaned as well. I've gotten used to walking long distances with the group but going up an incline? That was tough.

"What? Are your joints causing you problems, old man?" Oghren said. He was also grimacing at the path.

"Who you calling an old man barrel sucker?"

"Thunder humper."

"Arrow blower."

"Why you-"

"Enough already! I can't even keep my eyes on the road because of you two!" Eren said. "If you guys keep going like that I'll roll you down and you can get up yourselves again!"

"Oooh." Talen said.

"Nice Talen, real mature." I said. Morrigan was walking in her bear mode again. She snorted and I just rolled my eyes.

"It would probably be best if we took a rest, no?" Zevran said. We've been going for the whole day. It was already getting dark.

"When we find flat ground, we should make camp." Alistair suggested. He was winded as well.

We found flat ground and we made camp. Sten's scowl kept getting deeper and deeper the more we hiked toward Haven. I knew why. He thought this quest was just a waste of time. Though whether or not we'll be able to talk him down or have to fight him is the question.

"Ah! I must say I did miss your soup." Alistair said. He had the first watch. Talen and Leliana are now sharing a tent as are Morrigan and Eren. They have all gone to their tents as well as Wynne and Zevran. Sten and Derek were awake. Oghren was passed out drunk next to Alfred.

"That's your third bowl already Alistair." I said. Derek did a light chuckle focusing on his carving.

"What can I say its-" And then the screeching began. Morrigan's screams could reach Orlais. The rest of us at the fire looked at each other awkwardly. I face palmed.

"Does someone have some cloth to plug my ears?" Alistair said. He got red faced while Derek shook his head.

"Get used to it Templar." Derek said.

"I hope this doesn't go on for too long." Alistair said. I just kept on writing. I might as well go to the shared tent that me and Wynne has.

Wintermarch 20th

We have reached Haven. Things got off to a rocky start but we have begun the quest. We're taking a rest before continuing on to the temple. Haven is a bloody mess. Let me start off from the beginning.

After that horrendous night of hearing Morrigan screaming for an hour, we were all just tight lipped. Sten more so. I knew that once we reached Haven, he would put in his word. I hoped that it wouldn't end violently. Unfortunately with all my game knowledge, it didn't mean that I would successfully predict everything that could happen.

We found a worn path with steps in the mountains. I knew that this would lead us into Haven. We would have to tread carefully in there. If we went inside the houses and found the guards, we would have a slaughter.

"There, you see those sentry posts up ahead? That must be the entrance to Haven." Eren said.

"Finally, my feet are killing me." Derek grumbled. I stayed quiet near Sten. His scowl grew deeper.

"Halt. What are you strangers doing in Haven? There is nothing for you here." The guard said as soon as we entered.

"I'm sorry Ser. My companions and I got lost in the mountains. We were traveling from Orlais to Redcliffe. These mountains are hard to maneuver. May we rest here for a moment and resupply?" Leliana said quickly. Looking at us being haggard was pretty convincing but the guard still gave us the nasty eye. There were a couple moments of silence before the guard looked away and huffed.

"We have but one shop here. You are free to supply there but you will not go through our homes as it were a zoo. Keep to yourselves and there will be no…trouble. Then please leave." The guard backed off and we finally went in.

"Did it just get colder or is it just me?" Alistair whispered to me.

"Trust me it isn't the wind." I said. Of course as soon as we reached the courtyard, Sten gave out his opinion.

"And what strategy is this? To continue north until it becomes South and defeat the Archdemon from its rear?" Sten said. The 4 GWs looked at him.

"What are you talking about?" Talen said.

"The Grey Wardens goal is to find the Archdemon and defeat it. Instead we are looking for the charred remains of a woman in a village that has long since been forgotten. I have followed your shadows for far too long and for far too little results. You all are just running from battle." Sten said. I face palmed.

"We're not running Sten." Eren said.

"It's necessary." Derek said.

"Is it really? I had thought that we were climbing a mountain in a nearly abandoned village on some trivial whim of yours." Alistair's face turned red.

"You can say whatever you want Sten but we're the ones leading right now, so back off." Talen said.

"No. I am taking charge." Talen growled but Eren put his hand on his shoulder and shook his head.

"You want to take charge? You'll have to fight me." Eren said, unsheathing his sword and shield.

"Is this really happening?" Leliana said.

"Just let it go." I said.

"Defend yourself Warden." Sten said, grabbing Asala. Zevran and I gave each other a look as the others backed off. Eren and Sten circled each other but Sten did the first blow. Asala had major reach and Eren jumped back. Alfred was at my side growling but I held onto his collar. Sten ran up and did a wide swing. Eren ducked and rammed Sten with his shield. Sten resisted and shoved Eren off him.

"Shouldn't we stop this?" Alistair said.

"It's a man's fight kid. There's no stopping them now." Oghren said, taking a long sip. Alistair looked at me but I shook my head.

Sten stabbed downward and Eren evaded again. I could see Eren thinking as this battle prolonged. Sten had long reach, strength, and durability. Eren was more agile and had the increased defense of a shield. Sten did another power swing and Eren caught it with his shield. He followed the blade and rushed Sten. He bashed Sten's face with his shield and it stunned him. Eren got his sword and aimed for the legs. Sten grunted with pain. Eren crouched low and hit Sten's ankle with his shield, causing Sten to fall. Eren took this change and stabbed downward.

"Hey!" Alistair shouted but the sword stabbed into the dirt right next to Sten's neck. Eren panted heavily. Taking a direct hit with Asala would have killed him but defending with only his shield was probably draining as well. Sten was very strong. Sten grunted in pain as blood ran freely down his nose.

"I was wrong. You are strong enough to take lead. What are your orders?" Sten said, getting up.

"Get back in line Sten and follow my orders."

"As you wish."

"Talen, heal him. It'll be no good if he's weak." Eren said, sheathing his sword. I could see him grunting as he walked and I shook my head again.

"Men." As Talen healed Sten and Wynne took aside Eren I noticed someone was missing from our group.

"Where's Zevran?" I said. Leliana looked at me and then to the group.

"I don't know. Where could he have gone?" Leliana said. I groaned.

"I saw him entering a home." Morrigan said, coming up to us. I felt my heart sink. Uh oh.

"Where?" I asked. She didn't need to answer that question as I saw him getting out. His face was not happy.

"There is something you need to see." Zevran whispered to me. I nodded and tapped on Alistair's shoulder. I motioned my head toward Zevran. Leliana not too far from us, joined our group into the home.

"Why are we in here? We're breaking and entering! If that guard knew we were here…" Alistair began.

"What I have found is more pressing that worrying about a guard that already dislikes us. Here, look at this." We went near the shrine with massive amounts of blood running down from it.

"This is…very unsettling to find." Leliana said.

"Well this is, I mean, it could be used for food preparation right?" Alistair said.

"Meat doesn't bleed that much Alistair." I said.

"Well it doesn't hurt to be optimistic. Thinking about the alternative is…extremely disturbing."

"The crows have done rituals that involved sacrifices of blood. It gave them uncanny abilities not much different from our blood mage friend. I wonder…" Zevran said. I'll say this; Zevran is usually the smiley type that keeps his emotions in check. Seeing this definitely unnerved him.

"There's no point in wondering. This village isn't what it seems. Let's get out of here, now." I said. We came out of the house and everyone was in the center. The guard was still at his post but was watching all of us carefully. My hands were twitching.

"There you lot are! Come on! The shop is up the path!" Oghren shouted at us. We headed up the path but I grew a bit jumpy. There were a few villagers and kids out. I felt eyes watching us every step we took. We reached the shop and entered.

"And who are all of you? You're not supposed to be in Haven." The shopkeeper said.

"We're not exactly welcome here are we?" Derek said.

"We're just here to trade some supplies." Eren said.

"Oh? I don't have much but please take a look around." The shopkeeper said. I looked toward the passage to the room. I backed away slowly towards a chest. The shopkeeper was distracted by everyone. Zevran and Leliana saw what I was doing. Leliana took an armor rack and 'accidentally' pushed it on the floor.

"Oh I am so sorry! I'm so clumsy." Leliana said. The shopkeeper went over to the rack. I pulled Alistair with me to the back and Zevran followed us as well.

"What the, why-"

"Shh!" I put my hand to his mouth and signaled him to be quiet. We went into the small space where I knew the bodies of the Redcliffe knights were. When Alistair saw them, I heard the shopkeeper cry out.

"Hey! They are not allowed back there!" I heard grunts of battle and then silence. Leliana came out to us and saw the bodies as well. Wynne and Talen came after them.

"Hey, those are the knights from Redcliffe!" Talen said.

"This village…is not what it seems to be." Wynne said.

"Did the shopkeeper attack you?" Alistair said.

"Yep, got a dagger and everything." Derek said, coming into the room. "Get as much supplies as you can from here. I have a feeling we're going to need them." We went through all the shopkeepers stuff and found a few potions that we could use. I went to a chest where I found a nice pair of boots. I actually recognized them as the boots that are one of the personal gifts toward Zevran. I have to admit I had a thing for leather when I was a little girl. I used to chew on my dad's belts, I was five, don't judge me!

"What is that smell? It smells like Antivan leather." Zevran said.

"It might be these boots I just found. Here."

"You...are giving me the boots? What for?"

"It's a gift Zevran."

"I'm sorry if I was unappreciative. I have never received a gift without some form of compensation on either end."

"Well this is my gift to you. Go on, put them on!"

"Wait, I haven't even started to admire them yet! Ah smell that? Like rotting flesh. Just like Antiva City." He quickly took off his and put them on. "Oh and they fit perfectly!"

"We recovered what we could. We should leave." Morrigan said. We all agreed. Zevran gave me a toothy grin as we went out. Unfortunately as soon as we opened the door, they were waiting for us. The cultists surrounded us from all sides. That's when I felt something different from the people we were fighting. They seemed large and foreboding. I froze in my spot before I felt an arrow nick my cheek.

"They're Reavers! Be careful!" Eren shouted. I shook myself from it. There were three Reavers, a mage, and two archers. The Reavers had faces of demons but I had to remember that this was just one of their abilities from drinking dragon's blood. DOS went up toe to toe with their two handed weapons. The Reavers challenged every single one. The mage singled Eren out but Alfred jumped on him and maimed him. I ran from the main battle and launched myself on an archer, punching one in the jaw and kicking the other one in their jewels. They were both down and Leliana killed one with her arrow, the other got its throat slit by Zevran.

The Reavers didn't go down easy. They live for death and everyone we killed just fueled them. Even after killing the mage and archers, two Reavers were still fighting. Talen turned into bear form and bit off one of their heads. Sten went ahead and stabbed through the last one's armor. Even then the guy had the audacity to spit blood into Sten's face before bleeding to death.

"What are these?" Alistair wondered.

"Reavers. Blood doesn't always make mages stronger. I heard if warriors drink the blood of a dragon, they become monstrous, stronger, and difficult to kill." Eren said. "Father used to talk about them being common at the founding of the age. We'll need to be careful. These men won't go down without a fight."

"I have noticed." Sten said, wiping his face.

"Let's go up the path." I said. As we went we encountered an unarmed cultist that threw himself at us. Morrigan froze him and Eren shattered him. Then I felt that fear creep up on me as the hairs on my arms stood still. Two more Reavers came down at us with another archer. Sten and Oghren went to fight them. Wynne commanded some earth to fight against the Reavers and Leliana aimed at the archer. The guy went down and rolled down the path. Oghren went with him as the Reaver tripped him. I avoided Oghren and the Reaver focused on me. I avoided the axe and saw an opportunity. I stabbed in right in the throat. He gurgled and raised his axe but Alistair rammed him with his shield and stabbed in a weak point in the guy's armor. He struggled against it but soon bled out.

The other Reaver was killed when Talen burned him and Sten stabbed him from the back through his armor. He screamed in agony before dying. He rolled down as well when Sten took out his sword. Oghren limped up the path.

"Caught off guard, boy?" Derek said.

"Shut it old man."

We continued up the path where we heard chanting coming from the Chantry.

"Is there a mass?" Leliana said.

"One way to find out." Talen said and open the doors. Of course the Revered Father was talking about how Andraste is a dragon and they protect her and stupid stuff.

"Ah, visitors. Welcome to our Village of Haven. I had heard you all were wandering the village. Have you enjoyed your time?"

"If by enjoying our time means finding out about you killing people and getting attacked, yes we are." Talen said.

"Don't play like this village is normal. We're not playing around."

"Indeed you are not but we must remain hidden. We will protect Haven and all our charges at all costs. We don't have to explain ourselves to you. Do not worry for we are her chosen, her protectors. All will be forgiven." Everyone in the Chantry began to attack us, guards, villagers, and the Revered Father with his magic. I had one woman launch herself at my back and another villager in front wanting to choke me. I grabbed the woman from my back and hurled her at the man in front of me and the two tried to fight me bare handed. I had no choice. I uppercutted one and slit their throat. The woman who launched herself at me got knuckles in her face and then her throat. I crushed it. I rolled and two others went down. I stabbed both of them in their hearts.

The others did their job and inside the Chantry was a slaughter. I felt myself grow weary of all this death but shook the thought from my head. There was really no point in thinking about it anymore. I had to accept what I was. A killer.

"So now what? We haven't found Genitivi and we killed everyone." Alistair said. I went up to where the fake wall was and found a switch. It opened. The 4 GWs were the first ones in.

"Who, who are all of you? Did they send you to…to finish me?" Genitivi said. He was lying on the floor a bit bruised and bloody.

"No. My name is Eren, we're here to help."

"Oh thank the Maker. I am so glad to see someone that isn't a part of this damned-" Genitivi grunted in pain and grabbed his leg.

"What is it?"

"It's my leg. They broke it as soon as I asked about the Urn. I can't even feel my foot."

"Let me see." Talen said. His hands were green with healing magic.

"Even with the healing it will take time for the leg to properly heal."

"Ah, I don't have time! Not when the Urn is so close!" Genitivi said.

"We need the Urn and the ashes. Arl Eamon needs them to get better." Alistair said.

"Arl Eamon is sick? Will he live?"

"If the poison that he was given by Loghain does its job, then he will." Derek said.

"Politics, never did anyone any good. The Arl is a noble and good man. The Ashes will surely cure him but they are not here in the village. Haven lies as a shield. There is a temple further up the mountain that was built to protect the Urn. There is a special lock on the key that can only be opened with a special medallion that Eirik wears. I've seen what he does with it." Genitivi explained.

"Zevran." Eren said. He nodded, went out of the room, and came with it.

"This medallion?" Zevran said.

"Yes that is the one. Please, take me up the mountainside and I will open the temple for you." Genitivi said.

"Alright. Sten, take Alfred and make sure that no one else is outside. Wynne can you put a splint on his leg?" We furnished his leg. There was no one else outside. We took a back door path from the Chantry that had a path to go up to the mountain. Right now we're resting since Genitivi's leg was bothering him. Soon we're going up the temple. There's going to be mayhem and snow, but mostly mayhem. Time to go.

* * *

**So I've decided that after I have uploaded my 40th chapter, I'll take another 3 week break to rewrite my earlier chapters. My writing has come far since I've started so I want to make sure it reflects in all my chapters :3 Nothing too big just some added content, better grammar, I am only one person.**

**KrystylSky: **_Huh, well there's a thought to the whole Jowan thing. Hmmm...NO SPOILERS THOUGH! :D  
_**EG: **_Slight interaction here :3 I've seen Pewdiepie's videos a couple of time. He's ok.  
_**PetalsOfSin: **_Well not the best per say but I say it's probably my best fanfic so far.  
_**Guest: **_Considering that you reviewed my first chapter, all I can say is I'm working on rewriting the chapters so if you get to this point, then you have your answer._

**Sad that I'm leaving again? Anything you like so far? Any guesses on the story? How about a review? :D**


	40. The Temple of the Urn of Sacred Ashes

Wintermarch 18th

We're at the edge of Lake Calenhad and only a day away from Redcliffe. Leliana's spirit has become slightly anxious from meeting Talen again. Who wouldn't be since the whole Marjolaine thing? Wynne and I have been making sure that she's been happy on the way. Even Zevran has been adding his two cents. When he suggested a three way between him, Tomas, and Leliana, she slapped him. He's been a lot happier as well considering he's finally getting what he wanted.

Haven. That's our next destination. Cultists, the Urn, snow, dragons, the high dragon, and then the Gauntlet. I'm extremely hesitant on visiting the Gauntlet for various reasons. The spirit there can exactly see who we are and I'm afraid. I'm afraid of what he would say about me. I can't let anyone know though. We need Arl Eamon to make sure that the Landsmeet goes well. That and also getting the amount of evidence to go against Loghain. Then there's also the matter of Anora. She will want to rule, Eamon will put forth Alistair. He won't want to be king though but it would be for the good of the country if they got together. Alistair won't have any romances to tie him to the life outside the crown. Leliana is taken, he hates Morrigan, and he doesn't like me in that way.

All of this is coming into headway and we haven't even gotten the Dalish Elves. We're already halfway into Wintermarch. We only have two more months of winter and maybe a few more weeks if it's a late spring. I'm crossing my fingers.

Anyway, it's time to switch shifts with Zevran. Night.

Wintermarch 19th

We arrived at Redcliffe Castle. I'm taking a rest as I'm getting my things ready to go to Haven. While I was gone, Derek, Oghren, and Talen went to Lake Calenhad so Oghren can talk to Felsi. They apparently hit it off again. Derek and Oghren might always call each other names, but they really are bros. I'm also feeling a lot happier than usual. Oren finally is here!

We were met by the Castle stable hands as they took our wagon and Lily away. Tomas already went down to the village. We went into the main hall where they called everyone into when we arrived.

"I assume your trip was fruitful?" Bann Teagan said, standing in front of the fireplace. Everyone else was standing in the room.

"We have Bann Teagan although we met with slight resistance. There was a man, posing himself as Genitivi's assistant. He had killed the real one in order to take his place and gave us false information about Genitivi's whereabouts. After we had disposed of him, we found Genitivi's research notes of a village which he suspects hides the Urn. We have also heard of the knights sent to that place…the man had said that they had 'vanished.'" Leliana explained. Teagan scowled.

"I see. So we are to assume that these people are not peaceful in nature."

"We will go to the village and attempt contact. If we are able to find Genitivi then we will uncover where this Urn is." Eren said.

"Good. It is best if you continue on your journey forthwith. I am sorry that you will not be able to rest for long after your journey."

"It's fine. I'd rather get this over with as quickly as possible." I said.

"Then it's settled. We leave for Haven as soon as we are packed. We will succeed Bann Teagan." Eren said.

"Thank you. Then I will leave your group to it." Bann Teagan said. I let out a sigh of relief as Leliana and Talen began to talk to themselves. Eren came and gave me a pat on the back.

"I'm hungry." I said.

"I will make sure to bring you some food later on but first I would like to show you someone." Eren said. I wondered who could it be. We went into his room and I heard someone babbling that sounded extremely familiar.

"And the templars were really big! I don't know how they can walk with all the heavy armor but it was so cold!" Oren was talking to a servant who was cleaning out the sheets.

"Oren!" I said. He gave me the biggest smile and ran into my arms. I twirled him in the air, both of us laughing.

"Oh look at you! You've grown! When did you get here?"

"I sent out a letter as soon as you left. I wanted him to be here when you got back."

"Uncle said I can stay here! I liked the tower but it was so cold!"

"That's because stone can't retain heat."

"Are you going to stay here with me Nia? Uncle said I can help re-buld!" I giggled.

"It's rebuild Oren. I can't stay here for now. I still have to protect your uncle because he can't do it himself."

"Hey."

"Papa was always better."

"Hey!" We all laughed and I smoothed out Oren's hair. He got a bit taller but was still small in my eyes. It filled an empty hole in my heart to see him. It was like seeing one of my kids again.

"Nia has to pack now ok Oren? I'll see if I can get a guard to take you to the village so you can play with the other villager's children."

"Ok Uncle, bye Nia."

"I'll see you soon Oren. Thank you Eren."

"I thought you'd like this but enough of this novel moment, we have to get ready for our travels."

"Morrigan is rubbing off on you."

"She-"

"Don't say anything, I don't want to know.". I'm in my room now, my pack is all set and I got some food in my belly. We're going to Haven. We marked it on Eren's map already. It should take us no more than two days if the weather allows it and also if we are able to find a suitable path. We'll be going through mountains so Lily won't be coming with us. It's going to be tough, steep, and perilous. I hope everyone will be able to get there ok.

-/-

"My feet are killing me! Are we there yet?" Derek said for the third time. I groaned as well. I've gotten used to walking long distances with the group but going up an incline? That was tough.

"What? Are your joints causing you problems, old man?" Oghren said. He was also grimacing at the path.

"Who you calling an old man barrel sucker?"

"Thunder humper."

"Arrow blower."

"Why you-"

"Enough already! I can't even keep my eyes on the road because of you two!" Eren said. "If you guys keep going like that I'll roll you down and you can get up yourselves again!"

"Oooh." Talen said.

"Nice Talen, real mature." I said. Morrigan was walking in her bear mode again. She snorted and I just rolled my eyes.

"It would probably be best if we took a rest, no?" Zevran said. We've been going for the whole day. It was already getting dark.

"When we find flat ground, we should make camp." Alistair suggested. He was winded as well.

We found flat ground and we made camp. Sten's scowl kept getting deeper and deeper the more we hiked toward Haven. I knew why. He thought this quest was just a waste of time. Though whether or not we'll be able to talk him down or have to fight him is the question.

"Ah! I must say I did miss your soup." Alistair said. He had the first watch. Talen and Leliana are now sharing a tent as are Morrigan and Eren. They have all gone to their tents as well as Wynne and Zevran. Sten and Derek were awake. Oghren was passed out drunk next to Alfred.

"That's your third bowl already Alistair." I said. Derek did a light chuckle focusing on his carving.

"What can I say its-" And then the screeching began. Morrigan's screams could reach Orlais. The rest of us at the fire looked at each other awkwardly. I face palmed.

"Does someone have some cloth to plug my ears?" Alistair said. He got red faced while Derek shook his head.

"Get used to it Templar." Derek said.

"I hope this doesn't go on for too long." Alistair said. I just kept on writing. I might as well go to the shared tent that me and Wynne has.

Wintermarch 20th

We have reached Haven. Things got off to a rocky start but we have begun the quest. We're taking a rest before continuing on to the temple. Haven is a bloody mess. Let me start off from the beginning.

After that horrendous night of hearing Morrigan screaming for an hour, we were all just tight lipped. Sten more so. I knew that once we reached Haven, he would put in his word. I hoped that it wouldn't end violently. Unfortunately with all my game knowledge, it didn't mean that I would successfully predict everything that could happen.

We found a worn path with steps in the mountains. I knew that this would lead us into Haven. We would have to tread carefully in there. If we went inside the houses and found the guards, we would have a slaughter.

"There, you see those sentry posts up ahead? That must be the entrance to Haven." Eren said.

"Finally, my feet are killing me." Derek grumbled. I stayed quiet near Sten. His scowl grew deeper.

"Halt. What are you strangers doing in Haven? There is nothing for you here." The guard said as soon as we entered.

"I'm sorry Ser. My companions and I got lost in the mountains. We were traveling from Orlais to Redcliffe. These mountains are hard to maneuver. May we rest here for a moment and resupply?" Leliana said quickly. Looking at us being haggard was pretty convincing but the guard still gave us the nasty eye. There were a couple moments of silence before the guard looked away and huffed.

"We have but one shop here. You are free to supply there but you will not go through our homes as it were a zoo. Keep to yourselves and there will be no…trouble. Then please leave." The guard backed off and we finally went in.

"Did it just get colder or is it just me?" Alistair whispered to me.

"Trust me it isn't the wind." I said. Of course as soon as we reached the courtyard, Sten gave out his opinion.

"And what strategy is this? To continue north until it becomes South and defeat the Archdemon from its rear?" Sten said. The 4 GWs looked at him.

"What are you talking about?" Talen said.

"The Grey Wardens goal is to find the Archdemon and defeat it. Instead we are looking for the charred remains of a woman in a village that has long since been forgotten. I have followed your shadows for far too long and for far too little results. You all are just running from battle." Sten said. I face palmed.

"We're not running Sten." Eren said.

"It's necessary." Derek said.

"Is it really? I had thought that we were climbing a mountain in a nearly abandoned village on some trivial whim of yours." Alistair's face turned red.

"You can say whatever you want Sten but we're the ones leading right now, so back off." Talen said.

"No. I am taking charge." Talen growled but Eren put his hand on his shoulder and shook his head.

"You want to take charge? You'll have to fight me." Eren said, unsheathing his sword and shield.

"Is this really happening?" Leliana said.

"Just let it go." I said.

"Defend yourself Warden." Sten said, grabbing Asala. Zevran and I gave each other a look as the others backed off. Eren and Sten circled each other but Sten did the first blow. Asala had major reach and Eren jumped back. Alfred was at my side growling but I held onto his collar. Sten ran up and did a wide swing. Eren ducked and rammed Sten with his shield. Sten resisted and shoved Eren off him.

"Shouldn't we stop this?" Alistair said.

"It's a man's fight kid. There's no stopping them now." Oghren said, taking a long sip. Alistair looked at me but I shook my head.

Sten stabbed downward and Eren evaded again. I could see Eren thinking as this battle prolonged. Sten had long reach, strength, and durability. Eren was more agile and had the increased defense of a shield. Sten did another power swing and Eren caught it with his shield. He followed the blade and rushed Sten. He bashed Sten's face with his shield and it stunned him. Eren got his sword and aimed for the legs. Sten grunted with pain. Eren crouched low and hit Sten's ankle with his shield, causing Sten to fall. Eren took this change and stabbed downward.

"Hey!" Alistair shouted but the sword stabbed into the dirt right next to Sten's neck. Eren panted heavily. Taking a direct hit with Asala would have killed him but defending with only his shield was probably draining as well. Sten was very strong. Sten grunted in pain as blood ran freely down his nose.

"I was wrong. You are strong enough to take lead. What are your orders?" Sten said, getting up.

"Get back in line Sten and follow my orders."

"As you wish."

"Talen, heal him. It'll be no good if he's weak." Eren said, sheathing his sword. I could see him grunting as he walked and I shook my head again.

"Men." As Talen healed Sten and Wynne took aside Eren I noticed someone was missing from our group.

"Where's Zevran?" I said. Leliana looked at me and then to the group.

"I don't know. Where could he have gone?" Leliana said. I groaned.

"I saw him entering a home." Morrigan said, coming up to us. I felt my heart sink. Uh oh.

"Where?" I asked. She didn't need to answer that question as I saw him getting out. His face was not happy.

"There is something you need to see." Zevran whispered to me. I nodded and tapped on Alistair's shoulder. I motioned my head toward Zevran. Leliana not too far from us, joined our group into the home.

"Why are we in here? We're breaking and entering! If that guard knew we were here…" Alistair began.

"What I have found is more pressing that worrying about a guard that already dislikes us. Here, look at this." We went near the shrine with massive amounts of blood running down from it.

"This is…very unsettling to find." Leliana said.

"Well this is, I mean, it could be used for food preparation right?" Alistair said.

"Meat doesn't bleed that much Alistair." I said.

"Well it doesn't hurt to be optimistic. Thinking about the alternative is…extremely disturbing."

"The crows have done rituals that involved sacrifices of blood. It gave them uncanny abilities not much different from our blood mage friend. I wonder…" Zevran said. I'll say this; Zevran is usually the smiley type that keeps his emotions in check. Seeing this definitely unnerved him.

"There's no point in wondering. This village isn't what it seems. Let's get out of here, now." I said. We came out of the house and everyone was in the center. The guard was still at his post but was watching all of us carefully. My hands were twitching.

"There you lot are! Come on! The shop is up the path!" Oghren shouted at us. We headed up the path but I grew a bit jumpy. There were a few villagers and kids out. I felt eyes watching us every step we took. We reached the shop and entered.

"And who are all of you? You're not supposed to be in Haven." The shopkeeper said.

"We're not exactly welcome here are we?" Derek said.

"We're just here to trade some supplies." Eren said.

"Oh? I don't have much but please take a look around." The shopkeeper said. I looked toward the passage to the room. I backed away slowly towards a chest. The shopkeeper was distracted by everyone. Zevran and Leliana saw what I was doing. Leliana took an armor rack and 'accidentally' pushed it on the floor.

"Oh I am so sorry! I'm so clumsy." Leliana said. The shopkeeper went over to the rack. I pulled Alistair with me to the back and Zevran followed us as well.

"What the, why-"

"Shh!" I put my hand to his mouth and signaled him to be quiet. We went into the small space where I knew the bodies of the Redcliffe knights were. When Alistair saw them, I heard the shopkeeper cry out.

"Hey! They are not allowed back there!" I heard grunts of battle and then silence. Leliana came out to us and saw the bodies as well. Wynne and Talen came after them.

"Hey, those are the knights from Redcliffe!" Talen said.

"This village…is not what it seems to be." Wynne said.

"Did the shopkeeper attack you?" Alistair said.

"Yep, got a dagger and everything." Derek said, coming into the room. "Get as much supplies as you can from here. I have a feeling we're going to need them." We went through all the shopkeepers stuff and found a few potions that we could use. I went to a chest where I found a nice pair of boots. I actually recognized them as the boots that are one of the personal gifts toward Zevran. I have to admit I had a thing for leather when I was a little girl. I used to chew on my dad's belts, I was five, don't judge me!

"What is that smell? It smells like Antivan leather." Zevran said.

"It might be these boots I just found. Here."

"You...are giving me the boots? What for?"

"It's a gift Zevran."

"I'm sorry if I was unappreciative. I have never received a gift without some form of compensation on either end."

"Well this is my gift to you. Go on, put them on!"

"Wait, I haven't even started to admire them yet! Ah smell that? Like rotting flesh. Just like Antiva City." He quickly took off his and put them on. "Oh and they fit perfectly!"

"We recovered what we could. We should leave." Morrigan said. We all agreed. Zevran gave me a toothy grin as we went out. Unfortunately as soon as we opened the door, they were waiting for us. The cultists surrounded us from all sides. That's when I felt something different from the people we were fighting. They seemed large and foreboding. I froze in my spot before I felt an arrow nick my cheek.

"They're Reavers! Be careful!" Eren shouted. I shook myself from it. There were three Reavers, a mage, and two archers. The Reavers had faces of demons but I had to remember that this was just one of their abilities from drinking dragon's blood. DOS went up toe to toe with their two handed weapons. The Reavers challenged every single one. The mage singled Eren out but Alfred jumped on him and maimed him. I ran from the main battle and launched myself on an archer, punching one in the jaw and kicking the other one in their jewels. They were both down and Leliana killed one with her arrow, the other got its throat slit by Zevran.

The Reavers didn't go down easy. They live for death and everyone we killed just fueled them. Even after killing the mage and archers, two Reavers were still fighting. Talen turned into bear form and bit off one of their heads. Sten went ahead and stabbed through the last one's armor. Even then the guy had the audacity to spit blood into Sten's face before bleeding to death.

"What are these?" Alistair wondered.

"Reavers. Blood doesn't always make mages stronger. I heard if warriors drink the blood of a dragon, they become monstrous, stronger, and difficult to kill." Eren said. "Father used to talk about them being common at the founding of the age. We'll need to be careful. These men won't go down without a fight."

"I have noticed." Sten said, wiping his face.

"Let's go up the path." I said. As we went we encountered an unarmed cultist that threw himself at us. Morrigan froze him and Eren shattered him. Then I felt that fear creep up on me as the hairs on my arms stood still. Two more Reavers came down at us with another archer. Sten and Oghren went to fight them. Wynne commanded some earth to fight against the Reavers and Leliana aimed at the archer. The guy went down and rolled down the path. Oghren went with him as the Reaver tripped him. I avoided Oghren and the Reaver focused on me. I avoided the axe and saw an opportunity. I stabbed in right in the throat. He gurgled and raised his axe but Alistair rammed him with his shield and stabbed in a weak point in the guy's armor. He struggled against it but soon bled out.

The other Reaver was killed when Talen burned him and Sten stabbed him from the back through his armor. He screamed in agony before dying. He rolled down as well when Sten took out his sword. Oghren limped up the path.

"Caught off guard, boy?" Derek said.

"Shut it old man."

We continued up the path where we heard chanting coming from the Chantry.

"Is there a mass?" Leliana said.

"One way to find out." Talen said and open the doors. Of course the Revered Father was talking about how Andraste is a dragon and they protect her and stupid stuff.

"Ah, visitors. Welcome to our Village of Haven. I had heard you all were wandering the village. Have you enjoyed your time?"

"If by enjoying our time means finding out about you killing people and getting attacked, yes we are." Talen said.

"Don't play like this village is normal. We're not playing around."

"Indeed you are not but we must remain hidden. We will protect Haven and all our charges at all costs. We don't have to explain ourselves to you. Do not worry for we are her chosen, her protectors. All will be forgiven." Everyone in the Chantry began to attack us, guards, villagers, and the Revered Father with his magic. I had one woman launch herself at my back and another villager in front wanting to choke me. I grabbed the woman from my back and hurled her at the man in front of me and the two tried to fight me bare handed. I had no choice. I uppercutted one and slit their throat. The woman who launched herself at me got knuckles in her face and then her throat. I crushed it. I rolled and two others went down. I stabbed both of them in their hearts.

The others did their job and inside the Chantry was a slaughter. I felt myself grow weary of all this death but shook the thought from my head. There was really no point in thinking about it anymore. I had to accept what I was. A killer.

"So now what? We haven't found Genitivi and we killed everyone." Alistair said. I went up to where the fake wall was and found a switch. It opened. The 4 GWs were the first ones in.

"Who, who are all of you? Did they send you to…to finish me?" Genitivi said. He was lying on the floor a bit bruised and bloody.

"No. My name is Eren, we're here to help."

"Oh thank the Maker. I am so glad to see someone that isn't a part of this damned-" Genitivi grunted in pain and grabbed his leg.

"What is it?"

"It's my leg. They broke it as soon as I asked about the Urn. I can't even feel my foot."

"Let me see." Talen said. His hands were green with healing magic.

"Even with the healing it will take time for the leg to properly heal."

"Ah, I don't have time! Not when the Urn is so close!" Genitivi said.

"We need the Urn and the ashes. Arl Eamon needs them to get better." Alistair said.

"Arl Eamon is sick? Will he live?"

"If the poison that he was given by Loghain does its job, then he will." Derek said.

"Politics, never did anyone any good. The Arl is a noble and good man. The Ashes will surely cure him but they are not here in the village. Haven lies as a shield. There is a temple further up the mountain that was built to protect the Urn. There is a special lock on the key that can only be opened with a special medallion that Eirik wears. I've seen what he does with it." Genitivi explained.

"Zevran." Eren said. He nodded, went out of the room, and came with it.

"This medallion?" Zevran said.

"Yes that is the one. Please, take me up the mountainside and I will open the temple for you." Genitivi said.

"Alright. Sten, take Alfred and make sure that no one else is outside. Wynne can you put a splint on his leg?" We furnished his leg. There was no one else outside. We took a back door path from the Chantry that had a path to go up to the mountain. Right now we're resting since Genitivi's leg was bothering him. Soon we're going up the temple. There's going to be mayhem and snow, but mostly mayhem. Time to go.

* * *

**So I've decided that after I have uploaded my 40th chapter, I'll take another 3 week break to rewrite my earlier chapters. My writing has come far since I've started so I want to make sure it reflects in all my chapters :3 Nothing too big just some added content, better grammar, I am only one person.**

**KrystylSky: **_Huh, well there's a thought to the whole Jowan thing. Hmmm...NO SPOILERS THOUGH! :D  
_**EG: **_Slight interaction here :3 I've seen Pewdiepie's videos a couple of time. He's ok.  
_**PetalsOfSin: **_Well not the best per say but I say it's probably my best fanfic so far.  
_**Guest: **_Considering that you reviewed my first chapter, all I can say is I'm working on rewriting the chapters so if you get to this point, then you have your answer._

**Sad that I'm leaving again? Anything you like so far? Any guesses on the story? How about a review? :D**


	41. Kolgrim and the High Dragon

Wintermarch 20th continued.

After leaving the eggs where we found them, we went through another carved out passage way. Even though these dragons are most likely controlled, having the thought of one as a pet crossed my mind. To steal and egg and hatch the dragon from there then have it around would be pretty neat. But really that's just a thought. Onward we went upwards again to find more dragonlings and reavers in another huge cavern. It seems to be this temple's motto, big cavern, mucho enemies! Ah and yes there was another mage. They had a lot of them here apparently.

It's actually understandable to have them here. Closed off village, no Templars, so when someone had the ability of a mage they can't send them off somewhere. Instead they stay and train them by themselves here. It's not that bad but I'm getting off topic again.

If there's one thing that dragonlings don't like is being hurt by spells. They tended to aim toward the MTW group so our tactics was as follows; DOS and EAA (that's Eren, Alistair, and Alfred), went up to the front to tackle the human enemies. The dragonlings that strayed toward MTW were protected by ZNL (that's Zevran, me, and Leliana). Leliana had to bring up the daggers that she had when fighting the dragonlings off. The arrows still bounced off even if they weren't that tough. Zevran and I had to keep their attention while MTW gave support to DOS and EAA.

"Ugh, what is that smell?" Leliana said after we finished fighting.

"It looks like this is the lunch area for the dragons." I said after seeing many carcasses of various animals, mostly cows.

"Having all these dragonlings probably takes up most of their food." Derek said.

"They might have resorted to just eating vegetables." I said.

"No man can't survive on plants! They need meat." Oghren said.

"This is why I can't be a vegetarian." I said.

"Oh just shut up and walk girly."

"Walk where exactly? There are two paths." I said. It seemed that the group didn't notice them.

"I'm guess we'll be splitting up again?" Alistair said.

"No. We'll just have to take one and hope it's the right one. There are too many enemies here to split up."

"We're pretty capable Eren, I don't think that splitting up will hurt the group." I said. "We did it before so why not now?"

"Ok, ok." Eren said, giving me another one of those glances. "Derek, take the passage where the carcasses lined up. Morrigan, Talen, Sten, Leliana, and Zevran, go with him. The rest will follow me to the other path."

We all nodded and I followed Eren. Then he pulled me to the side of his not too gently.

"What is going on Nia? There is something different about you and I don't like it." He whispered to me.

"Nothing is going on. What's so wrong about going in and fighting?"

"You weren't like that. You don't just go and run into danger like that, you were always cautious and almost always tried to leave the other person breathing. You didn't kill so savagely before."

"These guys are going to kill us at any chance if we give it to them. I'm just making sure it doesn't happen. Is that so wrong?"

"Where did your remorse go? Where did your guilt go?"

"Logically speaking Eren, you're not supposed to feel that way when you're trying to survive. Do you feel remorse and guilt every single time you kill someone?"

"Yes because that is human nature. I ask for forgiveness even if the blood never truly washes off."

"It's for the better Eren. We're trying to save Arl Eamon and these people are in our way. To make sure they are out of our way I will kill them." Eren gave me a long stare and let me go.

"You've changed."

"It's hard not to with the stuff we do."

"And not for the better." Eren added which made my stomach flop to the ground for some odd reason. I just frowned and clenched my fists. I don't see why Eren was so worried about me. Being like this is better and much easier to deal with. I can't be saving everyone that I can, especially these guys, when they're just going to try to kill us later. It's better to kill than to be killed.

"Hey!" We stopped and Derek's group already caught up to us.

"There wasn't much in the other passage besides holding pens and two drakes." Talen said.

"Two drakes? That must have been difficult." Alistair said.

"Twas not so."

"At least not for us." Talen chuckled.

"The scales have been harvested for future use." Sten said.

"It could be useful if someone knew how to make Drake scale armor." Derek said.

"We'll save that for later. Let's keep moving." Eren said. We found another fork in the road and a mage. Alistair went ahead and used his talents and stopped her from spellcasting. Then three people out of nowhere ambushed the rest of us with a shock bomb and fire bomb. Zevran fought with one and all were dual wielding. There were only three and two were frozen by Morrigan and some swift heavy swings from Sten and Oghren shattered the two. The other one lost her duel to Zevran and killed her.

"Everyone good?" Talen asked.

"A little singed, but ok." Derek said.

"Same." I said. Wynne did a group healing which slightly drained her. After all this killing and defending, everyone started to become worn out.

"Another fork in the road. Same people, same path?" Derek asked.

"Yes, but take Wynne with you instead. Talen, you're with us." Eren said. We continued on the regular path where I knew Kolgrim was going to be.

"Is it me or are we going up?" Alistair said.

"You're right, we're going up the mountain." Talen said. We up the path and found another carved out opening into the temple. There were two traps on both sides with protruding blades. Two mages on either side, three reavers, and an archer.

"Nia, disable the traps!" Eren shouted to me, fighting against a reaver. I got my dagger and quickly tripped the wire, causing the blades to hit the reavers. Then I got a face full of ice from one of the mages. Alistair went ahead and fought with one of the mages. Oghren full on passed by the reavers and cut the other mage in half. Alfred went to the reavers that were stuck on the blades and finished them off. After shaking myself from the ice, I went ahead and tripped the archer and smashed his face in.

We went through another carved out entrance and something started to smell really bad. Not only that it was warmer here than in the other paths.

"What is that smell?" Talen said.

"Looks like the mountain isn't completely inactive. Look." Oghren mentioned as we saw fumes rising out from the rock. "Don't smell it too much. It can cause all sorts of things to you."

"Let's get out of here." Alistair said. We got through and entered another great cavern where we saw a couple of figures in it. We walked in and Kolgrim walked forward.

"Stop! You are your companions are to go no further!" He said.

"Who are you to stop us?" Talen said.

"You do not have the right to demand my name. You have corrupted our sacred temple. The blood of our most faithful runs in rivers of blood and you have slaughtered our young! I will let you do no more! Tell me intruders, why have you done all of this? Why did you come here?"

"We came here searching for the Urn of Sacred Ashes." Eren said. Kolgrim scoffed.

"You have forced your way into our lands, killed our people, all for an ancient Urn? Let me enlighten you stranger. The prophet Andraste has conquered death itself and has been reborn and returned to Her most faithful. Her form is more powerful and more beautiful than you can imagine! The Tevinter Imperium can only hope to slay Her now. What hope do you have coming here?" Talen laughed.

"You really think Andraste came back? You are raving mad, Andraste is dead."

"Uh Talen…" I said.

"You know nothing! Andraste has resurrected and has shown herself to Her faithful! To arms my brothers! For Andraste! For our victory!"

"You just had to make him angry didn't you?" Alistair said as we started to get out our weapons. There were two mages at the back, two reavers, and Kolgrim. In game wise he's a boss with an hp bar. Real life? He's just a dude with a lot of experience.

"Alistair take down the mages!" Eren shouted, going for Kolgrim. Oghren did a war cry and swung wildly at one of the reavers. Talen did a cone of fire on all three while Alfred made sure to get in between to protect him. Leliana shot her arrows at the mages and I followed Alistair over to the mages. I rolled and avoided until I got the other mage. I punched him right in the intestines, then did an upper cut to his chin. I heard a crack, I had broken his jaw. I stabbed upwards through his chin, the dagger went through his head. He was a goner. I saw that Eren was having trouble with Kolgrim.

He was bleeding in various places and had this demonic look to his face. Eren was already feeling the effects of the reavers. One of the other reavers was already taken down by Oghren and he was already facing the other. Alistair killed the other mage and was going to help Eren. They both crushed him in between their shields but he screamed out, grabbed onto Eren's head, and threw him across the cavern. Talen did a lighting spell which only made Kolgrim focus on him. Talen backed off as Alfred launched at Kolgrim. He hit Alfred on his skull and he dropped to the ground, unconscious.

"A little help here?!"

"You will pay for your words boy!" Kolgrim shouted, raising his axe in the air.

"Leave him alone!" I shouted and jumped on his back. Kolgrim shouted and bucked himself wildly trying to throw me off. I was being swung like a rag doll on his back and lost my weapons. No one else wanted to attack him for fear of hitting me. He dropped his weapon and grabbed me. He swung me in front of him and bashed his face into my own. I felt my nose started to bleed. He turned me around and I felt steel on my throat.

"You will be the first."

"Nia!" Eren shouted.

I growled and for a quick second, focused on the power in my stomach. I felt it as a rush but stopped it again before it became overwhelming. I felt my eyes grow brighter for just a second and grabbed his arm that held the dagger to my throat. I was able to pry it away and Kolgrim gasped. I bent over and threw him off me before I felt blood in my throat. Even that much power was still too much for me. I coughed blood onto the floor before I heard Eren do a battle cry and decapitate Kolgrim. Eren ran over to me after we won the battle.

"Nia, what happened? Talen!"

"I'm coming!"

"It's ok, just thought I used the power again." I said, before spitting out some blood.

"You look like a mess." Alistair said.

"A very bloody one." Leliana said.

"She's fine. Her nose was almost broken though. Stay still." Talen said, putting his hand on my face. I felt the calming energy of a healing spell. I wiped my face but the blood remained. I should just keep the blood stain like the Champion since, no matter what, I keep on having them. Derek and the others also faced a lot of drakes and dragonlings on their side. We regrouped and took a breather. I could already see Derek talking to Eren about continuing. We're already at midday. I would like it if we got the Urn before dark. Well, I think I got everything. Time to go.

-/-

We defeated a High Dragon and we are all extremely tired. We're taking another breather before heading into the Gauntlet. Truthfully how it happened was kinda funny.

So after our break after defeating Kolgrim, we go through the opening and to the near top of the mountain. All of us were just walking when we heard the roar of the high dragon. It was freaking huge. It was flapping near us and we were all crouching almost instantaneously. Finally it settled on the ledge and curled up. We all looked at each other nervously and Zevran laughed nervously.

"We are not serious in fighting a high dragon right?" Zevran said.

"Someone has to be a complete moron to get the attention of that." Alistair said.

"Then make sure you do not ring the gong." Morrigan said.

"Hey!"

"Keep your voice down Templar. We don't want it waking up now, do we?"

"Hey don't look at me. I'd rather not be roasted mage on a stick." Talen said.

"Walk slowly and quietly. With luck we should be able to bypass it." Eren said.

"And here I was hoping for a story for the guys back at Tapster's." Oghren mumbled. We walked cautiously toward the last part of the quest. Then I saw a flock of birds near us and Alfred barked and chase after them.

"Alfred!" Eren harshly whispered but it was too late. One of the birds landed in front of the gong and Alfred went to chase it, tripped, and tackled the gong. We all looked at where the high dragon was and it was already raising its head.

"I am going to kill your flea bitten hound for this." Morrigan said. The high dragon flapped its mighty wings and sent a fireball our way.

"Run!" Eren shouted. We all split before the fireball hit any one of us. "Wynne, Talen, Morrigan, and Leliana take the high ground! Keep hitting it!" Eren shouted. They all ran toward the opening we just came out of. The high dragon flew around us, looking for a place to settle as we all got out our weapons.

"And what should we do?" Alistair asked. Eren looked at all of us with a worried glance.

"Make sure you don't die." Eren said. The high dragon finally landed in front of us and did a shrieking roar that penetrated my brain. I felt myself reeling from the noise until I felt someone toss me down. I was nearly smashed by the dragon's foot. I was deaf for a second and saw DOS trying to get the dragon's legs. The dragon kept clawing at them and even grabbed Oghren just to toss him into one of the pillars. Sten tried going underneath it but the dragon rose on its hind legs and beat its powerful wings into a gale that tossed all of us to the floor. It began to fly again.

"Scatter!" Alistair shouted. We all ran in different directions as the high dragon turned out fireballs to catch any of us. We hid behind tall mounds of rock that were almost obliterated by one of the fireballs. It landed again and I saw Alistair and Eren go toward it. It breathe out fire that they both jumped out of the way. DOS went behind it and was trying to get its hind legs. Derek pounded the tail with his hammer which made the dragon mad. In a feat of swiftness, the dragon swirled to the other direction and chased after Derek. I got out of my hiding place and tried using my daggers to dig into its scales. It didn't work and I got kicked for my trouble.

"Derek!" Eren shouted. The dragon had him in its jaw. I saw Zevran come out of the tall columns that were shielding him and he threw a poison bomb at the dragon's face. It roared in pain and let go of Derek. He hid the ground hard and Sten grabbed him out of the dragon's raging stomps. I saw Alfred bit the underbelly of the dragon and it took off in flight again. I whistled to Alfred to get out of the way of a fireball. It fired three more shots before coming down. Sten and Oghren went up to battle it but it beat its wings and they both went down. I saw it getting ready for another fire breath when I saw three arrows striking it in the neck. Bad move. The dragon saw where the arrows came from.

I couldn't let the dragon get at MTW and Leliana. They were our main source of not dying. I scrambled with Alfred as it was getting ready for another fireball. In a moment of sheer stupidity, I jumped on top of its tail and made my way up its spine. It noticed me and calmed down its fire. The dragon bucked like a wild bull. I tried my hardest to hang on but my hands were bleeding from the rough scales. Then the dragon turned its neck and tried grabbing me. I think I let out a scream as it nearly grabbed me. I provided enough distraction for DOS to move in on its legs.

"Go for the wings!" Eren shouted. Finally the dragon got my leg and threw me into Eren and Sten. We recovered quickly to evade another fire breath when the dragon did another shrieking roar but in pain. Oghren was going to town on one of its wings. I heard a growl from the dragon as it started to chase down Oghren. He tried going into the columns to slow it down but it tore down the cover like it was nothing.

"Chew on this!" Derek shouted as he jumped from a mound and smashed his hammer into the other wing. It roared and flapped its ruined wings. It was angry, no furious. It didn't care anymore and it let out its fiery breath of destruction everywhere. We hid where we could but the covers were quickly becoming few. I saw Alfred running toward it and it gave him a good kick. He rolled, unconscious. Oghren took that opportunity to do an extreme swing to the dragon's side. His axe, unfortunately, embedded into the scales and he couldn't get it out. The dragon tried going for him but Sten was soon on the other side, hacking at its leg. The dragon's blood coated the rocks and ground of the mountain. DOS was keeping the dragon on its toes now that it couldn't fly anymore.

Another shriek and we all covered our ears in pain. Standing right next to an airplane as it took flight was extremely loud. This was as loud as that. It came up to its hind legs and beat its wings again, the DOS team were sprawled on the ground. I saw Zevran get another one of his shock bombs and aimed it dead center on the chest of the dragon. The flesh burned from it. The dragon saw Zevran running for cover but he wasn't fast enough. The dragon got him in its jaws. I felt something inside me turn red and I ran toward the dragon. I skidded underneath it and stabbed its underbelly like no tomorrow. I saw Zevran's body fall to the ground and Alistair quickly came and retrieved him. Then the dragon got on its hind legs and tried stomping me flat. I rolled out of the way before becoming a pancake as the dragon kept stomping on the ground.

Every single time I tried to get out from underneath the dragon, it kept almost stomping me flat so I retreated back. It was ok since I was able to stab some more but I had to be on constant watch from the feet. My vision was getting worse and worse the more she stomped. Dust was flying everywhere and I knew that I was going to be blinded, then I wouldn't be able to evade it anymore. I took a chance and crawled out and ran. I had help because the dragon suddenly clawed me and I hit a boulder bad. My breath gasped out. The dragon roared again. As I got up I saw why. Eren was climbing on top of her back, stabbing as he went higher and higher, his shield missing. The dragon wasn't bucking anymore for fear of showing her belly. We finally got the dragon into a corner and DOS and Alistair were focusing on her legs.

Eren reached her head and slashed away. The dragon roared and reared her neck high. Leliana took the chance every single time and more arrows were sticking out of its neck. Blood started to coat the mountain as the dragon bled more and more. Then Eren did the finishing blow and stabbed through her head. The dragon lurched forward and Eren rolled from the head. The high dragon was defeated. I got up, my back killing me.

"Let's not do that again." Zevran said. His armor was in tatters and he was limping next to me. Eren went to Alfred. MTW came down exhausted from healing all of us from so far. Really the only one that came out unscathed out of all of this was probably Leliana. Talen came over to me with some healing energy but I just shook my head.

"I'm fine. My back is really bruised but go look at the others." I said, leaning against a boulder. He left to go look at the others and I just sank myself to the ground. I groaned in pain from leaning but I was really tired. Eren came over and sat next to me.

"I'm going to kill Alfred once he gets up." Eren said.

"Who's healing him?"

"Wynne. You might as well get some rest. Maker knows we're going to need it." Eren said. I nodded and got out my journal to write. Talen came by to heal my back. It still stung even afterward because he couldn't heal me completely due to using most of his mana on the others.

Well so far Derek is cutting off the scales of the high dragon for more armor making materials. I got everything written down. The sun is already setting. If we want to get the ashes for Arl Eamon, we're going to have to do it fast. Hopefully the Gauntlet won't be too hard on me. I have no idea what the spirit is going to say about me.

Well, time to do this.

* * *

**I know I said I was going to update on the 5th but Inquisition! OH MAN! Anyway, I finally got it all figured out so far, minus the ending considering that I haven't finished it but the romance is going to be there! UPDATE ON THE CHAPTERS! Chapters 1 through 21 have all been looked over, rewritten, edited, with more character build up, dialogue, and hints so go ahead and look through them/ reread them if you'd like. I will be taking another break after the 50th chapter to go over and edit chapters 22 and more again, it's going to be awesome! Weekly updates for now. Unfortunately, with all my rewritting, I could not write more chapters. Until I get my backlog, the updates will be weekly so bear with me on that.**

**Also I have drawn Nia. The link to it is yamiayala .deviantart art / 20150225 - 082028 - 516420671, just remember to remove the spaces. The profiles for Talen, Eren, and Derek, will also be uploaded at a later date.**

**Shout out to Anemone Iris Sidera, Shattered Soul 2021, I-Y-T-Y, belovedtsuki74, Hachikonohime, and avatarange for favoriting/following this story! CONGRATULATIONS FlyingRainicorn FOR THE 200TH REVIEW!**

**EG: **_Is she changing for the better? On one hand she's taking initiative in battle, on the other hand, she's losing herself a bit. We shall see if it'll turn out in her_ favor..._Also happy early birthday! :D_  
**Phygmalion: **_Thank you, I read the codes on Revears and they have a fear aura, I thought it would be nice to include it. Well I can't say who she'll end up with, only that...it won't be who most will think it'll be. What will the guardian say? Hmm...well let's just say I like to torture my characters a bit :3  
_**Guest: **_You reviewed chapter 16 and I'm not sure if you continued to this chapter but well, I myself am extremely loyal to my husband. 3 years waiting? I could do it. If it was more...  
_**FlyingRainicorn, ROYGBIV, ZA: **_lol you guys are awesome for rooting for Zia, but we'll see in the later chapters.  
_**Guest: **_You who reviewed chapter 40, well **SPOILER **Nia does get to go home. She goes home really early actually in inquisition so a romance is perfectly believable. She's going to have trouble though, nothing says character development like hardship :3_

**Please give me your feedback on the early chapters if you can :3**


	42. The Trial of the Gauntlet

Wintermarch 21th Early Morning

Maker, I wonder how many times will you put me through more tests and how many more will I fail? How many times have I failed you Nia? I'm writing now for my own forgiveness for what I've done to you. I pray you will find it in your heart to forgive me. I will do as I promised you so long ago.

Derek had set aside the scales to take with us after our trip. We were in front of a large door to go toward the Ashes. We went inside and it was a small room, dust covered most of the floor, light filtered in from the outside. There was a man standing in full armor at the end of the room, the door to continue behind him.

"I bid you welcome, pilgrims."

"And who are you supposed to be?" Oghren said.

"I am the one who protects and guards the Urn of Sacred Ashes. I have waited many years for this."

"For us? Really?" Talen said.

"Your arrival is the first in a very long time. It has been my mission, my life, to protect the Urn and prepare the way for the faithful who come to worship Andraste. For many years I have stayed here and many more will I remain until my task is complete and the Imperium has crushed into ash to scatter into the winds."

"The Imperium no longer has the power from Andraste's time. Their empire has been weakening for some time." Wynne said.

"Is that true? Then perhaps the time for an end is at its beginning."

"We have come for the Ashes, spirit." Alistair said.

"You all have come to honor Andraste, and you shall, if you have proven yourself worthy."

"And if we are not worthy?" Leliana said.

"Then you shall not reach the Ashes but it is not my place to decide. The Gauntlet will do that. If you are worthy, you will behold the Urn and will be allowed to take a small pinch of the Ashes. If not, the Ashes will be lost to you."

"Let's get this over with." Talen said.

"Before you start on your journey, there is something I must ask. The path that has led you here was not easy. There is suffering in your past-your own suffering, and the suffering of others. Eren Cousland, you abandoned your father and mother, leaving them in the hands of the betrayer Rendon Howe, knowing that he would not show mercy. Do you believe you failed your parents?" I was in shock. I did not know how the spirit knew of my parents. Nia looked at me with worry. I swallowed the grief that was left in my throat. This was not the time for it.

"I…yes…I should have dragged my mother with me. I should have been better prepared for the attack instead of…I left them to die." Nia rested her hand on my shoulder.

"Thank you. That is all I wished to know."

"Tis amazing that every single religion thrives on guilt like a glutton to mince pie."

"Don't be so hard on yourself. You were in a position where you had no choices." Wynne said.

"Enough. Ask your question spirit." Derek said.

"Derek Brosca, you were a casteless dwarf, born with nothing to your name and rose above to become a Grey Warden. Yet you left your own kind to their squalor, to their fate. Do you believe that you failed them?" Derek's lip grew tight. He let out a world weary sigh.

"No, I haven't failed them and you would want to know why right? I'm a Grey Warden, my words have power now which means I can go back and make sure that being casteless is a thing of the past. I will rise along with everyone that had been denied a chance, this I swear."

"Didn't think you care so much about your kind." Talen said. Derek slapped him on the back.

"We have a goal, I'll do it since it's my job but as soon as we're done defeating the Archdemon, back underground for me." Derek said.

"Talen Surana."

"Oh great, yay me."

"Although you feel as though Jowan betrayed you, it is not your greatest suffering. No, it is the fact that you accepted an apostate to teach you blood magic then later gained the power over Darkspawn blood through a potion that has cost the lives of so many innocents, do you believe you have failed yourself?"

"No because I saw the value of those talents even if no one else did. A tool can't be evil, it just is. The person using it can be evil or good and that's what I saw. The good in the bad and the way I could use them. If I didn't have those talents, most of us would be dead here."

"That is all I need to know. And what of those that follow you? Alistair, a noble knight and a dutiful Warden. There have been many a time where you wonder if things could have been different, if you had joined Duncan on the battlefield. You could have fought beside him, protected him from the killing blow. You wonder if you should have died instead of him."

"I…yes. I do think about, 'What if I had died instead of Duncan?' If Duncan was saved then…I believe everything would be better. He had more experience, wiser. Things would not be so difficult for the rest of us."

"You don't know that Templar, no one knows that. Besides, you said it yourself he was getting the nightmares."

"Duncan saved you when he gave you the order to come with us Alistair. Don't spit on his last wish." Talen said.

"You…yes, you're right."

"Ask your question, Guardian. I am ready."

"Wynne, your age has made you wiser and the adviser to your companions. You are always ready with a word of wisdom. Do you wonder whether these words are banalities, nothing more than empty words from a long and distant past? A tool used by the Circle and the Chantry to spread their word? Do you doubt what you say?"

"You already know our answers, don't you Guardian? Yes, I do doubt whether I'm just saying dribble that passes through one ear through the next but only a fool is completely certain of himself."

"Tis a wonder how you keep speaking as though you know everything to the rest of us even though you doubt the very words you say."

"My mouth is not sewed shut Morrigan and I am a woman that speaks her mind."

"Speak it all you want Wynne as long as I get to ogle." Oghren said.

"Er, thank you."

"Zevran."

"Oh is it my turn? Time to divulge my secrets for the wonder of all our companions?"

"You have killed many with absolute no regret but there is one whose death still haunts you in the night. A woman by the name of-"

"How do you know about that?" I have never seen Zevran's face so pale.

"The knowledge is allowed to me but my question still stands, do you regret-"

"If you wish to know about it that badly then yes. Yes I do regret her death, now move on." I saw Nia look at him worriedly, but he was not facing any of us at all.

"Ah, the dwarf Oghren. You left your ancestral home and have come to the surface, knowing that-"

"Speak no more Guardian, I know what you're about to ask so let me save you some time. Yes, I wish I could have saved my family from Branka. I should have been a better husband. Maybe if I had tried more, and pushed harder she would have stayed home with a bellyful of baby Oghren and never went on the trail of the stupid Anvil. I failed her, of that I have no doubt. I came to the surface because I'm no dwarf anymore, or I'm barely one. My entire family is dead, my honor as a warrior long gone. I've lost everything and I got nothing left to lose." I saw Nia shuffle awkwardly by me. "And you girly? I don't blame you for killing her either so you can stop looking at me like you did me a great injustice. Enough of that, killing is killing, there's nothing more to it."

"Leliana, ever the faithful and yet you say the Maker speaks to you when all know that the Maker has left his world. He only spoke to one, Andraste. Do you believe yourself Her equal?"

"What!? No, I have never-"

"You were someone, you existed in Orlais. Once you came to Ferelden, to Lothering, your greatest fear was of losing yourself, to fade away and disappear. The brother and sisters challenged you on your beliefs and what you declared, you were hurt by their scrutiny but you also reveled in it. The attention was on you and you enjoyed it, whether it was negative or positive." Leliana sighed.

"A part of you is right Guardian. Maybe I did do it for the attention and I was afraid of disappearing but no more. A wise friend told me to accept the part of me that I feared but to also accept my beliefs. I know what I believe Guardian and I will not waver."

"Morrigan, daughter of Flemeth-"

"Do not even try Spirit for I will not play your games."

"Very well."

"Ask your question spirit."

"Sten, your Arishok gave you a quest to this land, to observe and answer a question of his. In that quest, after losing your compatriots, you slaughtered an entire family in a blind rage. Do you believe you have failed your people by allowing a Qunari to be seen in that light?"

"Never have I denied that I failed." The spirit rested his eyes on Nia.

"You, the one who walks without her name, to have come from a strange land to an even stranger time, have many regrets. They dance on you, plague your very mind, and in every shadow you see in yourself. There is one regret of this world that has never left you...the very fact that you knew of Rendon Howe's treachery and did nothing to stop him. Do you believe you have failed them?" Nia's eyes grew wide and I felt the rage burn at my soul.

"You what?"

"That isn't true! I did everything my power to save everyone I can! I told everyone I could to stay away from the castle but how could they when they were getting ready for war? They needed all hands in the castle and stayed anyway. Of course I failed everyone…"

"You knew!?" I shouted. I grabbed her roughly by the shoulders and glared into her eyes. "You knew of the attack that killed everyone? Why didn't you warn me?!"

"How could I warn you? What could I possibly say? 'Oh your great friend Rendon Howe is about to backstab you and kill everyone you love?' No one would have believed me, not you, not your father-"

"You could have done something!"

"I did do something! If it wasn't for me then you and Oren would have died! I tried everything in my power-"

"It's all your fault..."

"What?"

"You could have stopped him, you had your chance and you didn't take it. My family and everyone in the castle, their blood is on your hands."

"Hey, Eren-" Talen started.

"NO! This is All. Your. Fault!" I shoved her into a vase. She fell onto cracked glass. "I don't even want to see you, you disgust me." She gave me one look of incredulity before I looked away. Talen went to her to heal her hands that were cut by the glass. The tension between our group grew tenfold at that moment.

"The way for you and your companions is open. Good luck, may you find what you seek." The guardian said as he basked the entire room in light. He was gone and the door was open. We continued onward, the tension was palpable as we made our way into a large cavern with several spirits.

"Whoa, am I seeing things because I drank too much or is everyone seeing the translucent people?" Oghren said.

"This is unexpected." Alistair said. Nia walked toward a spirit and it started to speak.

"Echoes from a shadow realm, whispers of things yet to come. Thought's strange sister dwells in night, is swept away by dawning light. Of what do I speak?"

"The Urn is protected by spirits that speak riddles? What will they come up with next?" Morrigan said.

"Dreams." Nia said. The spirit spoke, the mother of Andraste, of how she saw a vision in a dream of her daughter's life, betrayal, and death. After explaining, the spirit basked in light and the light streamed to the door at the end of the cavern.

"You have to answer every single one correctly to open the door." Nia said without emotion.

"Well time to get to it then." Derek said. I saw Leliana and Zevran go to her but I was too gone in my grief and rage to give her a second glance. We each took a spirit and listened to their tale. They were all riddles of Andraste's life. Nia helped where she could and soon all of the riddles were answered and the door was opened. It was a dark passage way where I couldn't see the end but I went ahead anyway. I walked until I couldn't hear anymore footsteps except my own.

"Talen? Derek? What?" I turned around and no one was beside me. "What is going on?"

"Pup." I couldn't believe my ears. I turn to where I was walking and my father was there.

"This isn't real, you're already dead." I said although it gave me great pain.

"Of that much is certain but I can't let the chance to see my son again escape me." My father said, opening his arms. I didn't care if it was a vision or something else. I ran and I hugged him with all my strength. He was here, my father returned to me.

"You're here, you're here." I felt the tears and the grief come up from my heart. I was sobbing like a child again. My father was here for an instant.

"Now, now pup, dry your eyes. You don't want to spoil this chance with you blubbering with tears running down your cheeks, do you?" Father said. I grunted and wiped my eyes.

"But why? Why are you here now?"

"I have come to tell you to let go of your grief. You have carried this pain for so long and yet grieved for so little."

"I…I…I just…"

"I know but no matter how much you pray, you know that I can never return. Do not let your grief paint your soul, it is time to let go my son."

"But, but you wouldn't be dead if it wasn't for Nia! She should have told me what she knew! If she did-"

"What would have happened my son? Would you have believed her word? A word of a handmaiden and bodyguard over the word of a once trusted friend? To believe that he was withholding his army to attack us? You know the answer already pup. You are just looking for a way to release your anger and your sorrow. It was not of any fault to Nia. Yes she knew and she saved you, my dearest child." Father said, taking my face in his hands. "I owe her a great debt that I can never repay, to save my son and my grandson." I felt the hot tears run down my face as I held my father's hands. "She did everything one woman can do and even now her own grief runs rampant in her heart. She knows that the blood of the castle is on her hands, but you can help her through it as well. One person can only do so much my son. You must remind her of that, she should not bear the weight of what has happened. It is in the past my son. You must let it go."

"But, but I don't want to forget you." My father chuckled and it sounded heavenly.

"Letting go of your grief doesn't mean you will forget me. I know you will always keep me in your memory but don't let your sadness overtake your heart my child. Take all the pain, all the guilt, all the tears, and acknowledge it. Know what you have lost and let it go my son."

"Yes father."

"Ah my son, you have given me so much joy in my life. I do not regret my death. You have such a long road ahead of you. I love you my dearest son. Take this as a reminder of what you have gained in your travels. I must go now my son but know that I and your mother are waiting for you once your time will come."

"So we'll see each other again?"

"That I promise. Goodbye, my son." I hugged him one last time.

"Goodbye, father." His form left my arms and soon I felt the darkness go away. I saw my companions behind me. We had barely walked into the next passage. Everyone besides Morrigan had some form of tears in their eyes.

"What, what was that?" Derek said, wiping his tears.

"I don't know, but that was-"

Then the screaming began. Nia was grabbing her head, tears rushing down her face, and screaming sodding murder.

"Nia!"

"Mi niña!"

We tried going near her but her power grew unstable. We couldn't reach her for every single time we grew near, her power would burn us. She kept screaming, tears running down her face. The golden light started to crack her skin yet again.

"We have to stop her!" Talen said. Morrigan came by and inched her way toward Nia, reaching out to Nia with her hand. The golden power burned her the closer she got. Morrigan finally reached Nia's face and covered her eyes. I saw the faint grey light coming out and soon Nia's golden light stopped and she fell onto the floor, unconscious. Even then she still wasn't calm. Morrigan held her hand which was burned and bleeding. Talen came by to heal her.

"What did you do?" I asked.

"I, ow! Be careful! I put her to sleep." Morrigan said. Her hand was pink from the healing energy and that was it. I stepped over to Nia but Zevran cut me up and started to carry her.

"That is enough for me. I shall take her out of this place. It is best for her to not be here any longer." Nia was whimpering in her sleep and subconsciously grabbed onto Zevran. Her tears kept flowing and I felt a dagger go through my heart from the pain she was suffering.

"Nia." I said, trying to go closer and Zevran took a step back.

"No, mi amigo. You have done enough and she has suffered too much." Zevran said, glaring at me. He wasn't smiling anymore. He cradled Nia's body against him, her hand white from grabbing onto his armor in sheer desperation.

"I shall go with him. This quest is not for me to complete." Sten said.

"I might as well, something about this place has me all jumpy." Oghren said.

"Morrigan, go join them and make sure Nia stays asleep." I asked her. She gave me a huff.

"Fine. I did not want to see an Urn full of a dead woman's ashes." Alfred whined at my side and I allowed him to go follow the rest.

"So I'm guessing that the rest of us are going to continue then?" Talen said. I nodded as I saw the rest of our companions walked out of the Gauntlet. What did you see Nia? I hope you can tell me once you are well.

"Well let's get going." Derek said, clearing his throat. We walked around a corner to an open room with nothing in it.

"I don't see anything in here." Leliana said.

"A room with nothing in it? Maybe one of the tests is-" Then we saw a specter of spirits gathered at the door on the wall, and one that was preparing a fireball.

"Out of the way!" We all ran toward different sides but soon the specters came and rushed us, but they looked familiar.

"They are us! Careful, they know everything we do!" Alistair said, facing off with the double of myself. I had to make sure the Alistair double did not face the mages. Derek was facing himself, laughing all the while.

"This is the most fun we've had yet!" He said as he pounded the chest of his double, making it disappear.

"No one throws a fireball at me and gets away with it!" Talen shouted, conjuring a fireball and throwing it at his double and Wynne's double. Wynne summoned a fist of stone and hurled it to the Talen double and it faded away. I hit the face of the Alistair double and stabbed it in the stomach and it also faded. Leliana was shooting arrows at her double but Talen soon did a cone of fire, and the double disappeared.

"Sorry Leliana." Talen said.

"No worries. Alistair, duck!" He did and she aimed true at my double's head. Wynne's double was left and I was able to do a ramming attack and cut the double's throat. The enemy was gone and the next door was opened.

"Well that was some challenge, I wonder what are we going to face next?" Derek said.

"You're having fun with this." Talen said.

"Someone has to priss."

"Let's keep going before another spirit tries to kill us." Alistair said. We entered a room with square like contraptions on the floor and a wide chasm in between the next room. "Oh I'm so bad at puzzles."

"I'm not." Talen said. "Hmm, I wonder if I stand on those square things on the floor."

"Oh sure go ahead. If it kills you, at least we know it was a trap." Derek said.

"You don't think they're really traps do you?" Alistair said.

"Well, one way to find out." Wynne said. She went ahead and stood on top of one and an image of a bridge came to life in front of us.

"I see! We must find the right spots to complete it!" Leliana said standing on another. We all tried our hand at completing the bridge and after some time, managed to complete it.

"I have a feeling that Andraste only like the faithful who were smart."

"Luckily you made the cut." Derek said.

We went through the doors and all that was standing in our way was a wall of fire and an altar.

"By the Maker…look over there! There are the Ashes, that's really it!"

"Maker above, you're right." Leliana breathed out.

"But how are we going to get there?" Talen said.

"There is something written in this altar." Wynne said. "Cast off the trappings of worldly life and cloak yourself in the goodness of spirit. King and slave, lord and beggar; be born anew in the Maker's sight."

"Great, another riddle." Derek said.

"Can't you just part it with magic?" Alistair asked.

"No, it's not normal fire." Talen said.

"So, what are we going to do?" Leliana said.

"I remember something that Nia told me a long time ago back when we were in Highever Castle. Many people think fire just destroys but she told me that fire cleanses as well." I said. "Cast off the trappings of worldly life…" I had read and studied the chant in all my life. The answer was clear to me as day. "We have to take off everything."

"Wait, what?" Talen said. I started to take off my weapons, my armor.

"Are you out of your mind?" Derek asked.

"I've never seen more clearly." Leliana kept on peeking over me and Talen became red.

"Oh sod it all." Talen started to take off his own robes.

"Well, we have shared much in our time here." Wynne said, taking off her own robes.

"Oh this is humiliating, don't look!" Alistair said and Leliana giggled. We were all down to our small clothes.

"You better be right about this boss." Derek said. I took a deep breath before we all looked at each other. We passed through the fire with nary a burn.

"How is this possible?" Leliana said. The guardian came from the door in a shine of light.

"You have passed through the trials of the Gauntlet and have walked the path of Andraste, and like Her, you all have been cleansed. You have all proven yourselves worthy. You may approach the Sacred Ashes." The guardian said before disappearing in a shower of light. We buckled in our equipment again and approached the altar.

"I have never thought that anyone could find the Ashes of Andraste but here…here she is."

"I could not imagine a greater honor than to be here to witness this. I will never forget this feeling."

"You know, after everything that we went through, all the bad and all the good, I'm glad that I'm standing here right now. Say what you want but this is something I'll never forget." Talen said.

"Never in my wildest dreams did I ever think that I would lay my eyes on the Urn of Sacred Ashes, I have no words to express my happiness."

"I'll have to say, it's not a bad looking vase."

"Way to ruin the moment Derek." Talen said.

"You're welcome priss."

I walked up the stairs and looked at the Ashes with awe. I felt so small standing in front of them, to believe that I was able to even find them is a wonder. I realized that everything I felt was so petty at that moment. I opened the top and gathered a small pinch of the Ashes in a handkerchief and put it in a leather pouch. I put the top back on and thanked Andraste for this opportunity.

"We did it." I said. "Let's go." We took one of the doors which led into a long hallway all the way to the start of the Gauntlet. The others were waiting for us outside the door. Night has already settled.

"We weren't gone for too long were we?" Alistair said.

"It's pretty late, we might as well start camp either in the temple or out here." Oghren said. "Either way it's too sodding cold." I went to Zevran who was still holding Nia close to him.

"How is she?"

"She has calmed down for the most part but she won't awaken, not for some time." Zevran said. I sighed. I will have to beg for your forgiveness again Nia.

"It is better to camp inside the temple to ward against the cold." Sten said.

"Well, you heard the man, let's get going." Derek said. We found a small hidden door that led us to the start of the temple where Genitivi was doing his research. We camped by the bonfire that was still going. Everyone has already gone to sleep. Nia, I hope you awake soon. I have much to talk to you about.

* * *

**Remember how I said that she'd be going through some hardship? Yeah, poor Nia. So I got my backlog of 10 chapters again, 3 day updating will start from this chapter onward.**

**PetalsOfSin: **_Remember that I did say I was going to take off 3 weeks to go through and edit my chapters. I made sure to tell you guys two times, but I am sorry for the wait_ :(  
**Shattered Soul 2021: **_You're welcome. I'm working diligently on DA I in my head. I try to answer questions the best I can without spoiling anything unless there's no other way. I thought Alfred hitting the gong accidentally was funny too :3_

**KrystylSky and EG thank you for your reviews! :D**

**Nothing says 'I love you and your story' than a nice review :3**


	43. My Vision

Wintermarch 21th Late Night

We are halfway toward Redcliffe Castle. Nia, you are still not well. You barely respond and you don't eat. The guilt of what I did to you only grows deeper as the day passed.

After camping out from coming back from the gauntlet in the early morning, we saw first light and Derek made us get up to gather our supplies to continue our journey back.

"Ah, I feel a crick in my hip." Wynne said.

"Here, I'll help you up." Alistair said.

"Thank you Alistair. These old bones of mine tend to fail me at the worst moments."

"Don't say that, you're still very sprightly for your age." Wynne chuckled.

"Thank you."

"Have we gotten everything?" Derek said.

"Everything we came with so far." Talen said.

"Good let's continue." Derek said. I went to where Nia was. She was sitting down, looking straight forward not responding to anything.

"How is she?"

"She's in shock and doesn't follow simple commands. Someone is going to have to literally hold her hand to keep her walking." Talen said. He grabbed her and hoisted her up. She stayed standing, not saying anything with a dead look in her eye.

"Nia?" I said. She didn't turn my way and she didn't say anything.

"If she's like this for another three days without drinking anything, she could dehydrate and die." Talen said. I gave him a hard stare. "Of course we could always force her to drink."

"It is best if I take her no?" Zevran said, pushing me aside and grabbing Nia's hand. It pained me to see her like this and a part of me felt responsible for her state. Maker, I've made so many mistakes. We walked toward the entrance of the Temple where we found Genitivi with a spread of papers on the floor.

"Oh you are back! I saw you come early morning. I finally realized that I had worked the day away. The things that I'm learning is extraordinary-"

"Please we do not need another history lesson of Andraste." Morrigan said.

"Were you successful? Did you see the Ashes?" Genitivi fervently asked. I pulled out the leather pouch that contained the Ashes and showed it to him. "What is this pile of…Holy Maker…I-I'm not worthy to, what was it like, seeing the Urn in its glory?"

"Well it's going to be tough for an average person. There were a slew of tests." Talen said.

"Tests? How interesting. Now I know the Chantry will accept my research on the Urn. An expedition must be organized! The work to be done here, the history to be learned is too much just for myself. Pilgrims from all over should get a chance to see the Ashes."

"Yes and let all who know and worship her each take a pinch until there is no more ashes of a dead woman." Morrigan said.

"Will you be quiet?" I said.

"I doubt most pilgrims would even get through the gauntlet. Riddles that kill you? Facing your regrets? Trying to kill your own double then trying to make an invisible bridge? Yeah, normal pilgrims are going to die." Talen said.

"If it's that perilous a journey only the few of the most faithful will reach the Ashes." Genitivi said.

"Well I wouldn't care. I don't believe in Andraste." Derek said.

"Maybe it should be best if it's left alone?" Alistair said.

"It won't be that easy Alistair, the information will still spread." Wynne said.

"Oh we must let this happen! There is so much to be learned!" Leliana said.

"It's your call Eren." Talen said.

"The Ashes will be shared but you must be careful Genitivi. People will try to exploit this discovery. Everything evil that comes from this will be your responsibility."

"Don't worry. I will make sure the Urn will be in good hands. Now, I've gotten all I can. May I join you to Redcliffe? I might be able to pay for a wagon to my home in Denerim. If we should meet again, please find it in your time to visit me. I have garnered a small collection of artifacts. It's the least kind of reward for saving me."

"I will not carry him." Sten said.

"Wait, was that a joke?" Talen said.

"Hardly."

"Heh, looks like the Qunari does have a sense of humor." Oghren said.

"Let's go." I said. We made our way down the path from the temple to the village of Haven. It was quiet with no one in sight. Our escapade through the temple must have alerted the rest of the residents to flee. It was easier going down the mountain than up. Genitivi had to make a few stops for his leg to be healed from time to time. As we made our way down, we were all caught off guard by a mule and a man chasing after it.

"Get back here you sodding piece of meat with legs!" Sten went ahead and grabbed the mule by the scruff. "Oh well, I didn't expect to see travelers out in the bluffs. Not many people travel through here due to the winter. Thank you for your help."

"And who might you be?" Talen said.

"Oh pardon my manners. Felix de Grosbois, merchant and entrepreneur. I would have my cart of supplies with me but my helper is back with them. Are you interested in trading?"

"Nah, we're not too interested. We're heading over to Redcliffe castle on an urgent mission." Derek said.

"Oh well I might as well let you on your way but may I ask for your help?"

"No." Talen said.

"Well it seems travelers like you would have been interested in a golem."

"Wait! Did you say golem?" Oghren said.

"Yes. There was an artifact that I picked up in Jader, a golem control rod from what the merchant told me. I wouldn't be able to get to it but maybe you could?"

"You're not just giving us this control rod out of the goodness of your heart are you? There has to be a catch somewhere." Alistair said.

"Well, I suppose there is. The control rod is with me but the golem is somewhere else, waiting for the rod to awaken it. It's in a village down south called Honnleath. I won't be able to even get there. From what I heard the village has been overrun by darkspawn."

"A golem would be useful in our ranks." Sten said.

"This is too good to pass up." Oghren said.

"Well, what could we lose? You have a deal." Derek said.

"Great! Here is the control rod. If you have a map I could mark the location of the village. All you have to say is 'dulef gar' to wake up the golem from what I was told. Now I will be taking my mule back. Good luck travelers."

"Are you sure about this Derek? Nia won't be able to go on for long in the state she's in." I said.

"Take her back to Redcliffe along with the Ashes. We'll scour this village in search of the golem. Redcliffe should only be a day away. We won't be long." Derek said.

"I'm with the old man." Oghren said.

"Then let us be swift and activate the golem." Morrigan said.

"I'll go with Eren to Redcliffe, anyone else would like to come along?" Alistair said.

"I'll go." Leliana said.

"As will I." Wynne said.

"I will lead my niña preciosa wherever she will be safe." Zevran said.

"Alright. The rest of us we'll be going to Honnleath then. Take care until then boss." Derek said. I nodded and we parted ways. Nia is still in a very precarious state. She walked without rest with Zevran leading her by hand. We are resting now. We will be at Redcliffe Castle by early afternoon tomorrow. I hope you wake up then Nia.

Wintermarch 22nd

(So I'm back to writing again. I know I'll have to eventually thank Eren for writing for me... Things have, well they haven't changed necessarily, but things have happened. So the first part before I woke up is from what everyone told me so it might not be all that accurate. I just added this line so I could figure it out.)

-/-

I was being pulled by Zevran. I wasn't eating or drinking anything yet. I was severely dehydrated but was still going. It was lightly snowing when we came to Redcliffe Village. The sounds of the village being rebuilt echoed throughout our walk.

"We are finally back." Alistair said.

"Let's go. The sooner we can get back to the castle, the better." Eren said.

"What about Nia? She still hasn't gotten better." Leliana said. Eren looked at me and then to his pouch.

"If she still doesn't get better then I'll give her half of the Ashes. Let's go." Eren said. So we went to the gate that led into the bridge toward the Castle. We were walking on the cobblestone bridge when I heard something out in the distance that made me 'awaken.'

"Is someone yelling?" Wynne said.

"I think I heard someone too." Alistair said. This is when I finally woke up for real. I recognized that voice.

"Oren…" I whispered.

"Mi niña?"

"Uncle! Nia!" I let go of Zevran's hand and began to run.

"Nia wait!" Eren shouted behind me but I only had one thing on my mind. I saw a small figure running on the bridge toward us. A figure I recognized all too well.

"Oren!" I shouted. My lungs were burning from the sudden sprint.

"Nia!" There was also someone else running after him. Someone I didn't expect to see for a long time.

"Brother!"

"Fergus!?" Eren shouted confused behind me. I reached Oren and knelt to grab him. I hugged him and collapsed on my knees sobbing.

"I missed you so much Nia!"

"Oh Oren, Oren."

"Fergus!"

"Eren!" I saw from where I was sitting and looked up. It was Fergus. The brothers were hugging each other like no tomorrow.

"Nia! Papa came back he did!"

"Yes I see that now."

"Oh come here you!" Fergus pulled us into the group hug and we were all laughing and crying stupidly. I looked to where the others were and Leliana and Wynne were both crying. I felt so relieved and exhausted from all of this when I realized I was really hungry.

"Oh do I have a story for all of you!" Fergus said.

"Likewise my brother but priorities first. Let's go back into the castle out of this cold weather and finally get Eamon well." Eren said. Eren looked at me for a quick second before looking away. We had a lot to talk about.

"Oh you are finally well!" Leliana said, hugging me close to her.

"It's good too. I was wondering if I would ever eat your delicious soup again. It almost brought a tear to my eye." Alistair said and I laughed.

"You would have made do I bet." I said.

"Ah mi niña, me preocupaste tanto."

"Sorry Zevran."

"Now, let's get you inside and get you some water. You have eaten or drank anything in two full days." Wynne said and ushered us through the gates of the castle.

"What were you doing Nia?" Oren said. I haven't stopped holding his hand.

"Oh that's a really long story. I'll tell you all about it once I get some food in my stomach."

"Papa told me he was rescued at Ostagar by chis-and."

"That's Chasind Oren. When did he get here anyway?"

"I was taking care of the castle waiting for you until Papa showed up! I'm so happy Papa is here." Oren giggled. I smiled warmly at him and we went up the stairs through the double doors. The guards greeted us and a servant went to take Oren to his father.

"May I please have some food and a drink?" I asked a passing servant. She said yes and we went into the dinner hall to sit down.

"How are you feeling mi niña?" Zevran said, taking my hand again.

"Hungry."

"Do you remember anything that happened?" Wynne asked. I bit my lip and looked at the table.

"The last thing I remember was…what I saw in the Gauntlet." Everyone was silent after I said that. The only noises were of servants running around and guards talking in the background.

"What…what did you see?" Alistair asked. I just looked at him and sighed.

"Something that made my mind utterly shatter. I'd rather not talk about it right now."

"Fair enough." The servant gave me my food and drink and I almost inhaled everything. I almost choked as well.

"Slow down the food isn't going anywhere!" Leliana giggled.

"So what happened anyway after my whole, thing? I can't remember anything."

"You can't remember how you almost caused the whole mountain to crash down on us?" Alistair said.

"Wait, what?"

"It wasn't as bad as Alistair is making it out to be but you did lose control of your power. You burned Morrigan's hand very badly." Wynne explained.

"Not only that, you didn't walk anywhere unless someone was leading you."

"I held your hand to make sure you were well mi preciosa."

"You were crying nonstop as well. I have never seen you in so much pain." Leliana said. I hiccupped from the food and stared at my plate.

"You know…I saw Duncan…" Alistair started. "He told me that I shouldn't blame myself for what happened. It was out of my hands and that…that I should...properly grieve him once the time comes. He told me to never forget him because, once I do, he will truly die. I'm alive thanks to him. I'll never be able to repay him." Alistair said, wiping some of the tears that formed in his eyes.

"I saw Lady Cecile. She told me how proud she was of who I've become. She told me…it was ok to love myself and who I was. All the bad and all the good, and she loves me."

"Please I don't wish to share my own epiphany." Zevran said. I smiled at him. Eren came down to where we were.

"Arl Eamon is awake and well." Eren said. Alistair got up his chair.

"He is?"

"Yes, you can go see him now. Bann Teagan is telling him about everything that has happened. He told me that he will talk to every Grey Warden once they have come back." Eren said, sitting down and requesting some ale. Alistair left us to go see Eamon. I was fidgeting slightly in my seat. I remembered what Eren said to me back in the Gauntlet and I wasn't comfortable around him anymore.

"So, it's a bit late. I should probably go to my room and bathe while I have the chance." I said awkwardly getting up.

"I'll-"

"Zevran, you should know where my room is right!?" I said a bit too loudly.

"Yes, come with me mi niña." I couldn't look Eren in the eye. I know I hugged him when we saw Fergus but the last time I saw disgust in his eyes and utter betrayal. I won't be able to talk to him normally for now. I was holding onto to Zevran's hand as he led me to my room. Don't ask me how I know where he knows where my room is. He always knows.

"There is something on your mind, isn't there Nia?"

"There are a lot of things on my mind that I can't really…blah, I can't even say it." I said.

"You will always have me mi niña."

"Just mi niña? I kinda like the way you say my name."

"But it isn't your true name."

"…No it isn't."

"May I ask for it?" I looked at Zevran at the door to my room. I was truly thankful for him. He made sure I was safe when I couldn't do anything. I looked at the hallways and there was nobody there. I motioned him to come closer and whispered my name into his ear. He chuckled. "That is not so hard."

"Yeah well, don't say it all willy-nilly alright?" I said. I rubbed his knuckles with my thumb. It felt nice holding hands with someone.

"Is there something else…Nia?" I came closer and settled my head onto his shoulder and hugged him tight to me. I didn't feel him tense like last time. His arms settled onto my waist.

"You know I've never said sorry for punching your crotch when we first met." His laugh reverberated throughout his body. It felt odd to feel him so close but at that point I needed some comfort.

"You don't need to apologize Nia. Your comment later that night was enough." I chuckled and snuggled closer.

"What that you're eye-candy? I meant it you know. You are nice to look at."

"Ah but you never touch."

"Of course not I want to go to my husband with a clear conscious. Even this is way too much if he ever knew about it."

"Then why are you doing it?"

"Because I need it." A servant walked by, blushed, and walked away.

"If you do this for too long mi preciosa, I might become tempted to ravish you."

"Ah you killed the mood Zevran." I said, finally letting go. He looked at me warmly and brushed his fingers on my cheek.

"You are a very beautiful woman."

"Trying to win me over with compliments now Zevran?"

"I say it because it is true."

"Thank you, not just for that but also for what happened. Leliana did say you led me by my hand all the way here. So thank you for protecting me."

"If…you trust me enough to tell me of what you saw, I will be here." Zevran said, for once putting his serious face on. I smiled and kissed him on the cheek.

"Thank you Zevran." I said, going into my room and closing the door. I needed a bath badly. I took it and washed away all the grime I've accumulated over the past days. I might as well start to write about the stuff I was able to remember.

-/-

The guardian over the Ashes was going through us one by one. I grew worried for Eren when I saw the guilt and regret pass over his face. I put my hand on his shoulder and he looked at me. The guardian went ahead and talked about each and every one of us. I grew more nervous as he went through everyone. I was worried for Zevran for a while when the guardian talked about Rinna. I knew that Zevran would tell me that in time.

Finally after talking about Sten, the guardian's eyes rested on me. I felt my heart pound, my hands paralyzed, and my stomach flop to the floor. I was extremely scared about what he was about to say about me because even I didn't know my greatest regret.

"You, the one who walks without her name, to have come from a strange land to an even stranger time, have many regrets. They dance on you, plague your very mind, and in every shadow you see in yourself." That much was true. I dwelled on my mistakes for far too long. "There is one regret of this world that has never left you, the very fact that you knew of Rendon Howe's treachery and did nothing to stop him. Do you believe you have failed them?"

My eyes widened with fear. Out of all the things he could have chosen, he chose the one that was burned onto my very soul. I was scared of everything but that was the one greatest failure, then Eren looked at me with pure rage.

"You what?"

"That isn't true! I did everything my power to save everyone I can! I told everyone I could to stay away from the castle but how could they when they were getting ready for war? They needed all hands in the castle and stayed anyway. Of course I failed everyone…" No matter how much I tried talking to my friends, to the people in the castle, they never believed that they should have stayed away. I wasn't able to do anything.

"You knew!?" Eren shouted. He grabbed my shoulders roughly. I had a few flashbacks of my old ex and how he used to do it. I felt his strength through the chainmail and knew that it was the only thing holding him back from making bruises on my arms. "You knew of the attack that killed everyone? Why didn't you warn me?!"

"How could I warn you? What could I possibly say? 'Oh your great friend Rendon Howe is about to backstab you and kill everyone you love?' No one would have believed me, not you, not your father-"

"You could have done something!"

"I did do something! If it wasn't for me then you and Oren would have died! I tried everything in my power-"

"It's all your fault." I felt my heart tear out of my chest. No, it was more of a stabbing sensation. Yeah, I know cliché but that is what I felt. What's more I felt it all the way down to my ankles and wrists like someone was trying to pin me down.

"What?"

"You could have stopped him, you had your chance and you didn't take it. My family and everyone in the castle, their blood is on your hands."

"Hey, Eren-" Talen started.

"NO! This is All. Your. Fault!" He shoved me away and I tripped on the cracked ground onto a vase. The shards cut my fingers. I just sat there, not being able to believe what he had done. "I don't even want to see you, you disgust me." My mouth hung open in disbelief. I felt my tears on the edge of falling. I couldn't forget the face that Eren gave me. The pure hatred on his face engraved in my memory. It hurt, it hurt so bad. It reminded me of my failure. It reminded me that he was right. I was drowning in the blood of all those who perished in the attack. Talen came by and healed my cuts. I already felt the warm tears coming down. I still had a mission though and I had to see it through. I got up.

Zevran gave me a worried glance but I just shook my head and wiped my tears. We went on to the cavern of riddles. I heard some of the party banter but I didn't care for it at the moment. I went to the spirit who was closest to me. It was the mother of Andraste. I answered correctly and she washed the room in a bright light before going over to the door that was locked. I felt the tension in the room as a gigantic weight on my shoulders. I felt everyone's disappointing stares on my back. Maybe I was imagining it or something, I'm not sure. My failure was out in the open and I wasn't able to take it back. My burden was trying to suffocate me and I was allowing it. All the emotions, self-hatred, depression was coming back to kill me and I wanted to let it.

I helped with the riddles when someone got stuck on them. My voice came out as weak and small. I felt I was crumbling down an inescapable abyss with no one around to help me and Eren was giving me the push to my fate. I wanted to curl into a ball, go to sleep, and never wake up. I was tired, so tired of the pain. We answered all the riddles. We were about to go see Eren's dad, Jowan, and Leske from what I remember. Then it was different. The door opened to almost pure darkness. I sighed and followed everyone. I walked and walked but there was no light anywhere. That's when I noticed everyone was gone.

"What the…this wasn't in the game." I said. There was no echo and no light but I was still able to see my hand in front of my face. "This is weird."

"Ma!"

"Mamí!" I couldn't believe my ears or my eyes. I saw my son and my daughter running toward me.

"Ace! Alice!" I ran up to them and knelt down. They both laughed and hugged me. I felt my tears come out in waves. "Ah mis niños! Oh I never thought I would ever see you again! Oh look at you, you're both so beautiful!"

"No I'm not! I'm manly like papí!"

"And I'm la muñeca!" I laughed at both of them. My son looked so handsome and my girl looked just like her older sister. "You're both so big."

"Mamí we saw how you were fighting all this time!" Ace said.

"Papí always said to tell him whenever we saw you in our dreams. He said that we have links!" Alice said.

"So, you've been watching me all this time?"

"Yeah!"

"Yep!" I laughed and cried at the same time, holding them close to me.

"When are you coming back from vacation mamí?" Ace said.

"I'm not sure papas but I know that I'm always thinking about you two."

"Ma I miss you." Alice said.

"I miss you too, so much! Here." I said. I got my necklace and took it off. "This is my necklace. Papas you get the cross, nena you get la virgen ok? The ring is for your dad. Make sure you give it to him ok?"

"Ok ma. We'll be waiting ok?" Ace said.

"Mamí I love you."

"I love you too!" They both hugged me.

"I love you both so much." I said, kissing them both on their head. "I want to go with you. I want to go home."

"Ma? Ma? I can't see you."

"MA!" My children were starting to disappear from my eyes.

"No wait, no! No! Take me with you! I want to go home! Papas, mamas! Don't leave me! NO!" I screamed, hugging them closer to me but their images were starting to fade. I couldn't even hear their voices. Then they were gone. The light returned and all I saw was stone on the floor. It was too much. My hands shook in front of me. My children were taken away from me.

"Ah...ah..." I grabbed at my hair and I started to scream. I couldn't wrap my mind over how I saw my children for only a moment and then they were gone. I couldn't see anything anymore. I didn't know anything anymore. I broke. That was the last thing I remembered. It hurts to even write it even now but I know what I saw. I saw my children, my real children. They see me in their dreams. They know I love them and that I'm trying to go home. My necklace is gone but that's ok. I know that wherever it is, it's with them. Night has finally come and it's better to go to sleep, well once I go to the bathroom. I'm not looking forward to tomorrow.

Not at all.

* * *

**And that is what she saw. After I wrote this I cried and hugged both of my kids. I couldn't bare to be away from them.**

**PetalsOfSin: **_Thank you for your review! Another break is going to come after the 50th chapter to continue on editing/rewritting from chapter 21 to 40. So_ sorry!  
**Shattered Soul 2021: **_Her one biggest failure, I mean she keeps all her failures close to her. Which is bad as well. She has a lot of bad emotional habits. They will come to bite her. And yeah, Eren was a jerk but he wanted someone to blame besides Howe. He was letting the grief fester inside of him and he let it out on her. As you can see he feels really guilty about that. About her knowing...well can't reveal too much now can I?  
_**helenGet: **_Nia wouldn't leave, she's too goal oriented to leave now. Plus she still has it in her mind that she has to protect Eren and the rest. Just because he did that doesn't mean that she'll give up and leave.  
_**EG: **_Yep Nia's POV and I think you'll like this chapter with all the ship tease lol_

**Can't know I'm doing a good job without a review :3**


	44. Conscripted

Wintermarch 23rd

Derek and the others still haven't come back. Alistair and Eamon have been spending a lot of time together. I finally got his amulet from sneaking around the study but I haven't given the amulet to Alistair yet. Also more things have happened.

The morning was pretty good. I got to spend some time without my armor on for once as I went around the castle. Zevran was gone and Leliana was in the dinner hall eating breakfast.

"Hey Leliana. How did you sleep?" I said, requesting a breakfast.

"Very well. It is a luxury to be out of the cold." Leliana said.

"Yeah that's true. I didn't get any nightmares either so that was good." I said. "Where's everyone else?"

"Eren and his brother have gone down to the village. I believe his son is still sleeping. Eamon and Alistair have taken some time to themselves now that Eamon is better."

"That's good." I said and yawned. I began to eat and drink plenty of water.

"How are you feeling?"

"My eyes are dry, my mouth is dry, and my skin doesn't really settle back but I'm getting there."

"And your emotional part?" I gulped down my second glass already starting to feel full.

"Well that's going to take some time to heal. I don't even feel comfortable around Eren or…well, you guys if I'm going to be truly honest."

"What? But I haven't done anything to you."

"I know, I know but I felt like everyone was judging me back in the gauntlet. My greatest failure was thrown into my face and made public for everyone to see. I feel like everyone was…disappointed in me."

"I am not and have never been disappointed in you. You were one woman against a tide of darkness. There was no more you could have done then what you did. Eren and Oren are alive thanks to you. They should be thanking you."

"And blame me for the rest of the people who died that night?"

"You might have known what was going to happen but that didn't change the fact that no one believed you."

"I know, I know but a part of me feels responsible. I should have been more forceful, I should have dragged his mother with us but I didn't. I regret it every single day and the guilt is still weighing me down."

"You should not blame yourself."

"But I do Leliana. I do and Eren did as well."

"He was angry-"

"Like he should be."

"Nia."

"There was a massacre that I could have done something about but I did nothing. It's on my head. That won't change."

"Please you are letting you guilt speak for you. Don't let yourself be whittled down. You are stronger than this."

"No Leliana I'm not. This," I moved my hands up and down my body," that you see? It's all an act. I repress all of this, I keep it out of my mind because I can't think about it right now. Right now, we have a darkspawn army to defeat and an Archdemon to kill. I have no time to think about my guilt or my regret or my failures. I have a goal in mind and I have to complete it. I may put out a strong front Leliana but inside? I'm broken more than you know and there's no one left to pick up the pieces."

"Because you are pushing us away Nia!" Leliana said. I just stared at the floor. She huffed and got up from her seat. At first I thought I succeeded in making her go away then she grabbed my arm and roughly got me out of my seat.

"Hey!"

"I'm going to show you something." Leliana said. Soon she shoved my cloak over my head and dragged me out of the castle, over the bridge, and to Redcliffe Village. We passed the windmill, snow covered everything, and followed the path where the hills overlooked the village.

"Ok we're out in the cold without my armor or my knives and I'm feeling a little naked out here."

"What do you see?" Leliana said.

"Oh come on Leliana-" Then she slapped me. "OW! What the f-"

"What. Do. You. See?" Leliana said and shoved my head to look at the village. There were people scurrying about with wooden planks. There were men still practicing with the dummies and the targets that they had out. I recognized Fergus and Eren helping fix some of the homes, the Chantry Mother Hannah giving out the chant to the people working.

"I…well…people working?" Leliana gave me a hard stare. "Ok that wasn't the correct answer. Um, people rebuilding? Getting on with their lives?"

"Yes they are rebuilding. They are rebuilding their village from the catastrophe that they had to endure. You see what little is left from the attacks but they endured and they continue. Mind you that some can't even stay here due to the events that they went through. Some can't look at this village the same anymore but there are more who are staying. Yes it was tragic what these people went through, but they are strong enough to live to see another day. Some are even strong enough to keep fighting."

"So you're saying that this village is like a metaphor to me? That I've seen into the mouth of the monster and lived and got stronger?"

"Yes!"

"Leliana I'm not as strong as you think. I'm a terribly weak person that just keeps pushing her issues away until they break me."

"Then you don't trust me."

"What? No of course I do!"

"Then tell me! I'm here for you! Alistair is here for you and Zevran. You can't keep all of this inside you Nia, you saw what happened to you when you did. Let it out just tell me!" Leliana said and I wrenched my arm away from her.

"Tell you what Leliana? What do you want to hear? Yes I let a bunch of people die and it's all my fault? That I would love to go back and do it all over again but I can't? That even if we're killing people I'm losing my guilt over that? That I'm so painfully lonely and homesick that it brings me to tears just thinking about my family?" I said finally ending with a sob. "That I'm so sick of all this and I want to be selfish for once and just go home? I want to go home Leliana! I want to see my family again!" I covered my face. I didn't want her to see my expression. I cried silent sobs of everything I've kept inside.

"Let it out Nia. Stop fighting it." Leliana said softly. So I did and like a small child, I wailed, cried as if my life was depending on it. It was so much that I've repressed the bottle was just overflowing in cracks of emotions. I didn't know how long I cried but my voice finally became hoarse. I was just hiccupping, snot rolling out of my nose. Leliana came and wiped my face with her cloak. I looked at her and she smiled softly.

"I'm sorry." I said.

"No you have nothing to be sorry about." Leliana said, hugging me tight to her. "You have carried so much for such a long time. Remember that you have friends here, family that are willing to be there for you. You don't have to be strong all the time Nia. We will carry you when you just can't anymore." I let out a shuddering sigh and let myself be comforted by her.

"It's hard you know? I've let so many tell me that but only one has actually made sure he was there for me."

"Your husband?"

"Yeah. Oh, ok. Hah, I'm good. No really I am. Give me a second." I said. I got some of the snow from the ground and wiped my face with it. I cleared my nose and wiped off all the water from my face. Leliana giggled.

"Feel better?"

"Yeah a lot better. Tired but much better."

"Good, now time to face another problem."

"What's that?"

"What are you going to do with Eren?" Leliana asked. I let out a big breath.

"That I'm not even sure. I know that Eren probably worried a lot about me but the last of my memories was him throwing me on a vase and telling me that I disgust him. So I'm not sure how to even go about it really." I said.

"You are going to have to talk to him eventually. Maybe sooner than later."

"I'm not really comfortable around him anymore."

"If you are going to talk to him will it make you feel better if I was with you?"

"Probably. I would rather not think about it now. I want to go back to the castle, maybe take Oren into the village if he wants to."

"I have a question."

"Shoot."

"Why did you 'awaken' when you heard Oren?"

"I have absolutely no idea. I have read a lot of useless information but there is really no one factor that causes someone to wake up from being in shock or a coma." I said. "Anyway let's get our butts out of this cold and back to the castle."

"I'm actually going to go down to the Chantry to see if they need help giving out supplies to the villagers." Leliana said.

"Alright. I'm going to see if Oren woke up and then I'll see you around." I made my way back. The cold was a bit welcoming after everything. At least it gave me a chance to really clean up my face after everything. My face felt tired after all the crying. So I went inside and went to my room. I took my cloak off and found my armor. It needed a good washing and shining but I told myself that I could do it another time. I went my way through the hallways until I came down to the main floor. I saw a lot of servants going to and fro trying to clean what was left of the disaster. Then I saw the study at the end of the hall. I walked with confidence so no one was suspicious. I sneaked right through and softly closed the door. Eamon wouldn't give Alistair the amulet after so long but it was Alistair's mother's amulet. I had to give it to him. I searched through the desk and found it. It was severely cracked but fixed. I looked through the crack I left in the door. No one was out there so I went out and pocketed the amulet.

"Nia!" I heard as I went into the hallway. Oren went up and hugged me.

"Wow you got bigger since I last saw you."

"Not really. The Templars said I still have a lot to grow. Mages are very nice people too. Why did they say they were mean?" Oren took my hand as I led him to where he was staying.

"Who said that?"

"The man in the tower. He was really tall and had really curly hair."

"Cullen?"

"Yes!"

"Because he was mad at a few mages that were bad."

"So does that mean that all mages are bad?"

"No. Not all mages are bad just some of them."

"Is that what happened to Connor? Was he a bad mage?" Kids really do see the truth of everything.

"No he just wanted to save his father."

"Oh Papa is in the village! Can we go see him?" Oren said. I sighed. That meant meeting Eren.

"Alright let's go but we have to get you some warm clothes." Time to get Oren prepared to go out.

-/-

So more things have happened but let's start off from where I last left this entry. I asked one of the servants for something warm to wear for Oren. They borrowed from what Connor left behind. When the Templars came to leave Oren, they already took Connor. Teagan wanted to wait until after the war was over but the Templars didn't wait at all. It was for the best for him. With this the mage circle will be up in no time. We got him some warm gloves, shirts, pants, and thick boots. I put on my cloak and we headed out to the village. It was lightly snowing as we walked out. Oren held my hand as he told me about the circle tower.

He had to stay in the apprentice quarters with the few mages that survived. He tried not to see how they were cleaning inside. Apparently Cullen took a shining to him and taught him how to practice with a wooden sword. The mages were really nice to him besides that one mage that was always spouting how it was a sin to be born. Oren liked it there at least.

"Wow! Why doesn't the water freeze in a waterfall?" I thought about it but I couldn't really think of anything.

"You know I'm not really sure. Let's go into the village and ask your dad." I grabbed Oren and swung him around. He was giggling like crazy as I ran toward the village. I slipped slightly as we finally got to the bottom.

"Whoa! Well that could have ended badly."

"Papa!" Oren left me and went to Fergus who was showing a few of the men who were willing to fight some sword tricks.

"Oren!" Fergus laughed as he grabbed Oren and lifted him up in the air. "And this here boys is my son. Say hello Oren."

"Hello!" I smiled from afar. It was nice to see this.

"Come here Nia!" Fergus said. I walked to him and he got me in another bone crushing hug.

"Eren told me how you saved him and my son. I can't thank you enough." Fergus said.

"Is that all he told you?" I said.

"Well…he told me how you were very heart broken that you couldn't save…Oriana…but my son. I can't believe I still have him with me. Oriana is a part of him as well. Thank you Nia. The Maker sent you to us I'm sure of it." Fergus said. I felt my heart wrench from slight guilt but welcomed him all the same.

"My brother was looking for you. He should be down at the houses trying to repair what they have. You should go look for him. I'm surprised you haven't taken up on his offer."

"What offer?"

"Well the offer to marry him of course."

"What!?"

"Oh is Nia going to be my new auntie?"

"No, no, and no. Sorry Oren. Why would you even suggest that Fergus?"

"Oh well I only assumed because he is so smitten with you."

"That was a while ago Fergus, he's not smitten with me anymore." Fergus just gave me a look and a roll of his eye.

"Whatever you say Nia. Just go look for him." Fergus laughed. I ruffled Oren's hair and went off into the houses. I saw Leliana with the Chantry sisters and brothers passing out blankets and food. I was happy that she didn't lose that part of herself. When I was distracted I accidentally bumped into someone.

"Sorry." We both said at the same time and it was Eren looking down on me. The fight or flight instinct came full on and I wanted to run.

"You're getting pale and that's saying something."

"Uhhh."

"How are you feeling?"

"Um fine." I looked away. I heard Eren sigh then I felt him grab my hand and drag me. I seem to get dragged a lot today. "Hey! Wait!"

"I know we need to talk and we have to do it somewhere private."

"Eren, let go." I tried stopping but Eren was a man of muscle and I couldn't shake my hand away. We were in a small alleyway and I felt my alarms go off. He shoved me in there. The only way out, he was blocking. "Uh ok I'm not feeling fine anymore." I looked up at him and felt a fear inside me. A very old fear of him hurting me. I unconsciously backed up. I didn't feel safe and I really wished I had my weapons.

"I'm sorry." Eren said, kneeling down in front of me, his head hung low. I was completely thrown off from his response and stood there not moving. "I was a fool to blame you for what happened. I don't know how you came across Howe's plan but it was unfair for me to put all the fault on your shoulders. Please forgive me."

"You hurt my feelings."

"I know."

"You pushed me to my breaking point."

"I know."

"You also pushed me into a vase."

"I'm sorry about that as well."

I sighed and rubbed my face. He was sorry and was kneeling before me. Eren was like my brother and I couldn't stay mad at him. I wasn't mad at him in the first place either. I was more sad than anything. I went down to his level and flicked his forehead. He looked at me with a guilty expression.

"I forgive you. Now get up." I said. He did and looked a bit sheepishly. I heard a raven cry in the sky and it landed near us. "You were angry but that doesn't mean that you should get that angry all the time. I'm sorry for not trusting you with the information. Maybe if I did we could have saved some more lives."

"Don't think about what-if's Nia. What's done is done…I saw my father in the Gauntlet. He told me that it was time to let go of my grief. It will be a long time but I've learned to love my memories. You should to." Eren said placing his hands on my shoulders. I sighed and nodded. He hugged me close and the tension that was between us finally faded away. We parted and I smiled at him.

"Ok now that, that is over we should be getting back to the Castle. It seems that the others have arrived."

"How do you know that?"

"Morrigan is here." Eren said, taking out his arm. The raven squawked and landed right on it before traveling up to the shoulder.

"How do you know that's Morrigan and not some random raven?" The raven bristled its feathers and gave one long and loud squawk in my face. "Never mind that's Morrigan." I could tell she was laughing. Eren laughed as well and we got out of the alleyway. We got out of the housing complex and were going near the Chantry when I saw Leliana come up next us.

"There you both are. Derek and the others are back." Leliana said.

"I know, Eren told me when Morrigan gave us an unexpected visit."

"Morrigan?" Leliana wondered and the raven squawked again. "Oh."

"I would have expected them to come in two days or more." Eren said.

"Unless the golem carried them all back."

"There's that."

"I don't think the golem came with them. Come, let's go to the castle." Leliana said.

"Lead the way." We started to go up the path and got to the bridge. Morrigan flew off Eren's shoulder and shapeshifted back to her normal self. How she is able to wear her robes that left her nearly naked in this cold was beyond me.

"How was Honnleath Morrigan?" Eren said, going to her side and grabbing her by the waist. Leliana gave me a curious glance. There was no doubt that she was wondering about me and Eren. I shrugged and that I would tell her later.

"Pitiful. All we found were darkspawn corpses and a pile of rubble that was found to be the golem." Morrigan said. I could tell she was cold since she leaned against Eren.

"Wait you mean the golem was destroyed?" I said.

"Yes. Twas nothing more than a waste of our time. I cannot believe you sent us to the middle of nowhere for a treasure that was already broken." Morrigan said, poking Eren in the arm.

"I didn't know the golem was going to be broken, don't blame it on me." I couldn't believe that Shale was gone. It was sad that I never got to know her. It must have been one of the things my presence changed. We went up to the main gates and went inside. Talen, Derek, and Alistair were all waiting in the main hall. Morrigan just huffed away to her room. Leliana and I decided to stay.

"It's good that you have gathered here for there is much to be done. Alistair and my brother Teagan have informed me of the plight of the land as well as your mission regarding recruiting those for you army against the Archdemon. I should first be thankful to you Grey Wardens, although it was at a cost that…I'm still absorbing. For saving my son and saving my life, I would like to offer you a reward."

"A reward? Finally some recognition." Derek guffawed.

"If you'd like Arl Eamon." Eren said.

"I would like to declare all Grey Wardens and the companions that are traveling with you Champions of Redcliffe. You all will be always a guest in these halls."

"Thank you Arl Eamon." Alistair said.

"Still there's a lot to talk about." Talen said.

"We must speak about Loghain brother. We will not know his reaction once he learns of your recovery."

"I can't believe that Loghain allows civil war when the darkspawn are crawling at our door. I have known him for many years and he has never been one to desire power."

"Yeah somewhere along the lines, he got greedy." Derek said.

"I was there brother when he announced that he was taking control of the kingdom. He is mad with ambition."

"Yep mad enough to kill Cailan, then us, then you, and probably several others." Talen said.

"I do not know what happened to him to cause him to desire power, but he must be stopped. We cannot afford to fight this civil war to the bitter end."

"But you can rally the nobles can't you? To fight under your flag against Loghain?" Alistair said.

"Yes I can rally the nobles to follow me but not all. Loghain has made very powerful allies but we cannot nor have the time to campaign against him. Someone on either side must surrender if we have any chance of defeating the darkspawn."

"So we get the stone licker on the ground and demand him to surrender!" Derek said.

"It's not going to be that easy." Talen said.

"When is it ever?" Alistair said.

"I agree that he must stand down but for now our army will be reserved to fight the darkspawn not each other. I will spread the word of Loghain's treason, here and against the king but it is a claim made without proof. Those claims will sow doubt in Loghain's allies, but we need something else. We need a challenge to the throne that Loghain cannot ignore, someone with a stronger claim to the throne than Loghain's daughter, the queen."

"Oh no…" Alistair mumbled.

"Truly you are not referring to Alistair, are you brother?"

"Never in my wildest dream would I even propose this alternative but the impossible has occurred."

"Alistair as king? That's not a bad thought." Talen said.

"May I fetch you some more ale, sire?" Derek said.

"Oh stop it! I'd make a terrible king! Don't even think about this!"

"Alistair you know that if I or Teagan would make claim, just through marriage, we would be deemed opportunists no better than Loghain. You have a claim through blood."

"Have you ever asked about what I want?"

"Sorry Templar but the things you want and the things for the country are two separate things right now."

"A Templar for a king? Great." Talen said sarcastically.

"Besides if you didn't go forth as king then we'd have to fight the darkspawn under Loghain. Do you really think you'd be able to do that knowing all that he's done?" Eren said.

"What? I…no Eren."

"Then there is only one way to proceed. I will call a Landsmeet and gather all of Ferelden's nobility in the city of Denerim. There, the country of Ferelden, can decide one and for all who shall rule. Once they have decided we can finally focus on fighting our true foe, the darkspawn. What say you friend? I do not want to continue without your blessing." Eren rubbed his beard, thinking about it.

"Your plan to proceed sounds good enough. I say we go for it."

"Very well. I will send out the word as soon as I can. Before we proceed there is another matter I would like your help with friend. The mage, my son's tutor, still lives."

"He does brother. He has been stationed in the dungeon since the end of the battle."

"Bring him here Teagan. I wish to see him." Teagan went ahead to go to the dungeons. I saw Talen's face grew hard. He was scowling again.

"Careful there priss. All your frowning is giving me a headache."

"Well sorry if I'm not happier." He mumbled. After waiting for a couple of minutes, Jowan was dragged by the arm by Teagan. He stood on to the side next to some guards.

"Jowan. The things that you have done under my home and trust is not in question. You tried to have me killed. In the ensuing chaos, you set to motion events that nearly destroyed an entire village, killed my wife, and almost destroyed everything I know and cherish. What have you to say in your own defense?"

"I have nothing to say my lord other than to give you my apologies. I don't expect any mercy for what I have done."

"I see. My friend, do you have anything to say for Jowan's behalf?"

"He is a blood mage…" Alistair said.

"That point is null and void since I'm here." Talen said.

"He did kill his wife." Derek said.

"Only to save her son!" Talen said.

"He did try to kill Arl Eamon." Eren said.

"Only because he had no choice! Jowan is stupid, yes I know big surprise there, but he was forced into a corner because the Circle of Magi was about to have him tranquiled even when he didn't do anything wrong! Everyone knows that if you corner a mabari, it will rise up and strike. That's what happened here. Please my lord, I know I have no right to ask for mercy from you for what he did, but he is still my friend."

"Well said Grey Warden. You show more loyalty than I have encountered and more than what would expect from him. What would you have me do then? As the injured party, I cannot see any mercy for what he has done." Talen gave a quick look to Jowan.

"Release him into my custody."

"What!? Talen-"

"I cannot do that."

"Priss are you hearing yourself? You do know what he has done."

"Yeah I know. My lord, I insist you give him to us."

"He is a maleficar, a mage outside of the circle and a dangerous blood mage that can ensnare and control people's minds. He is far too great of a danger to release to you." Talen gritted his teeth.

"Then you leave me no choice Arl Eamon. I invoke the Right of Conscription." Eren face palmed, Derek laughed, and Alistair's mouth hung in complete disbelievement. I just smirked.

"Are you certain of this, even after all he has done and all that he is?"

"Hey the joining isn't as easy as you think it is my lord. He could very well die from it."

"What?" Jowan said.

"Not only that, if he doesn't die from it, he will have a forever duty to fight the darkspawn until his last breath."

"Hey um, can we-"

"Then I have no choice to release him in your custody but see to it that he never again walks in my Castle."

"Leliana, take him to the village please." Talen said. She nodded and he went along with her. "Oh and if he tries to run, kill him for me. And put some handcuffs on him on the way out!"

"You are evil priss."

"I hope you know what you're doing." Alistair said.

"Trust me."

"Now back to the matter of the Landsmeet. Now that I am well I can recall my forces and organize my allies. I would prefer to wait until I can gather every one before called the Landsmeet. In the meantime, please pursue the remainder allies that are on the Grey Warden treaties. We will need all the allies that we can get to fight against the darkspawn. That is all. You are welcome to rest here before your journey."

"Thank you, my lord." Eren said bowing to him. Talen already went outside to probably catch up with Jowan and Leliana. I sighed at it all.

"Wow, what a load of events huh Alistair?"

"I still can't believe that Talen would conscript a blood mage and a maleficar out of all people to the Grey Wardens!"

"Don't the Grey Wardens accept everyone in their ranks be they king or thieves?"

"Well yes but Jowan, he-"

"Made some really, really bad mistakes but he is still Talen's friend you know." I said. Alistair groaned as we both went upstairs to go to our rooms. I followed him into his room.

"So just a question, why are you following me into my room?"

"Oh can't you guess? I'm here to ravish you of course."

"What!?" I laughed so hard I had to hold my stomach.

"Oh man your face Alistair! Oh, ok, ok, I'm good now. No actually I'm here to give you something." I reached into my back pocket and got his amulet.

"This…this is my mother's amulet but it's not broken. Where did you find this?"

"In Arl Eamon's study."

"Oh in his study? Then…he must have found the amulet and put it back together. Why would he do that?"

"He probably wanted to give it back to you."

"Maybe. All those times he came to visit me and all I did was just push him away. I, thank you, I mean it. I thought I lost this to my own stupidity. I'll need to have a talk to him before we leave. I can't believe it though, did you remember me mentioning it? Huh, I'm so used to people ignoring whatever I say."

"Oh come on Alistair you should really hold me in a better light. You know I'm always there to listen to you. My shoulder is always ready for your tears."

"Ha, ha, very funny." I shrugged. "You know I will be there for you as well. Speaking of which…do you want to talk about what happened? In the Gauntlet I mean."

"You know everyone is really curious about that."

"Well you did kind of break down and almost killed us all."

"You're exaggerating."

"Be that as may be, I'm worried for you. Are you sure you don't want to talk about it?" I stayed quiet for a second before pushing Alistair in his room and closing the door. I went for his straps and he blushed immediately.

"Shut up Alistair I'm only doing this to keep my mind occupied…I…I saw my children."

"Your son and your daughter?" There go the shoulder pads.

"Yeah. The vision I had was them coming to me. They dreamt of me. They know I wanted to come back to them and that…they loved me." I put down the chest plate that held the griffon. "I was so happy to see them. Oh they looked beautiful. So beautiful. They grew up and I was able to see them for a moment. I gave them my necklace. I told them what each of them got and to take my ring to my husband." I said, slipping off his gloves. "Then they started to disappear. I wanted to go with them. I wanted to go home. Honestly Alistair, if I was given a choice, I'd go home this instant."

"That…must have been extremely hard on you. I'm sorry."

"No it's ok. I already cried my fair share of tears."

"And yet your eyes are watering again."

"Oh well look at that." I sniffled. I wiped them again and Alistair hugged me. I didn't stay for long though. "I'm ok, really Alistair. It's tough, yeah but I'm holding out. Leliana had to give me a lesson this time."

"I could only imagine."

"Yeah but I shouldn't keep you. We have to get some rest before going to the Brecilian Forest and getting the Dalish. That's all that's left now."

"That's true. I can't believe we're nearly done."

"Yep. Cross your fingers for some luck. I'm going to get something to eat and then head to my room." I said goodbye and went to the kitchens. I made myself a plate of food and took it to my room. The day was long and I cried more than I thought I could in one day. A lot has happened. Well time for that bath.

* * *

**Raise their hands, how many people guessed at the Jowan thing? Can you believe we're this far in the story now? I'm already at Denerim in my backlog! This story is coming to its conclusion! O_O anyone has some guesses as to how this will all end?**

**Shout out to zazeazu and Buggy300 for favoriting/following this story!**

**Shattered Soul 2021: **_Oh you think this is hardship? Poor Nia is going to suffer even more in the next two games if that's to be believed, but it's mostly at a fault of her own than anything. I know, I would die to have my kids taken away from me after so long. If you're wondering what happened in the Gauntlet was true, those were her kids, it wasn't an illusion. Yep, in the first chapter Nia mentioned that she rather give out her nickname than her real name since her real name is very unique. Also I love your reviews because you give me such good feedback! :D A reader that understands what I do is_ awesome!  
**EG: **_Eventually it will be but not until she goes home which is way in the DA I future. I knew you would love the ship tease! :D  
_**ZA: **_Thank you but it's true when you hug someone for a really long time, good chemicals come out of your brain to make you feel better. Nia was just using Zevran lol  
_**ROYGBIV: **_Pi day was awesome! And thank you, that Gauntlet scene was filled with feels!_

**Feedback is the greatest thing you can do for a writer, Please Review :3**


	45. Traveling Part 4

Wintermarch 24th

We finally left Redcliffe.

I had a teary goodbye with Oren and Fergus just rubbed my hair. He made me promise to watch over Eren. Bodahn and Sandal decided to tag along again.

"Are you sure you want to stay with us? There's a lot of business here in Redcliffe." Alistair said, putting in our packs in the wagon.

"Oh this is a fine village but a merchant like me must keep moving. Follow the business, isn't that right my boy?"

"Enchantment?"

"Good to have to you around Bodahn." Derek said. "At least with this we can also rest with your cart."

"It'll make time go faster at least." Eren said, getting Lily ready.

"Are you really going away Nia?" Oren said, coming with Fergus to the stables. "I don't want you and uncle to go away!" He sobbed.

"Oren they have to go and get their friends to fight the darkspawn." Fergus said.

"But, but-"

"Hey Oren." I said, going down to his level. "I need you to do something for me. Something that only you can do ok?" Oren sniffled and nodded. "I need you to protect this village. Your dad here is strong, but he needs someone stronger like you ok? Your uncle and I are going to fight the bad guys so we can't stay here. You can and you can protect them ok? Can you do this for me until we get back?"

"O-Ok Auntie." I felt my face flush a little and I gulped down the lump in my throat. We hugged for a bit before I went and sat on Bodahn's cart. Sten, Morrigan, Derek, and Leliana are in the wagon led by Eren. Bodahn's cart is being pulled by a mule. I was sitting right in the back with Sandal, Zevran, and Wynne. Oghren is still denying both ways of travel. Morrigan has turned into a raven and was flying in the air. Jowan and Talen are both walking talking to themselves.

"So on the way to a haunted forest with the Dalish that will probably kill us on site if we're lucky." I said.

"They are not heartless mi preciosa. They will only warn us of the impending danger to our person if we continue in their midst, unless you are an elf." Zevran said, cleaning his blades. Wynne stayed quiet but her eyes kept on traveling back to Talen and Jowan.

"You don't trust Jowan do you Wynne?"

"It will be hard for him to earn our trust especially after what happened at the Circle and at Redcliffe."

"He is still a good looker, no?"

"He's your type Zevran?"

"My types are the willing mi preciosa and that goes for both of you." Wynne huffed and I laughed.

"Give him a chance Wynne. Talen recruited him for a reason you know? He can't be that bad, look at Talen. He's a blood mage yes, he almost killed Arl Eamon, which looks really bad, but Talen chose him right?"

"You should stop while you're ahead Nia." Wynne said.

"Oh I should huh? But there's also something else I can do." I said, getting up from the cart and jumping down. I went over to Talen and Jowan. "Yo guys! Sucks that you two are walking."

"They're manly enough! Even the spindly one!" Oghren shouted.

"Who's the spindly one?" Jowan said.

"Well Talen is the priss, I'm girly, so you're the spindly one. Oh and we haven't been introduced. My name is Nia, the knuckle buster of the group." I said, holding out my hand. Jowan looked at it a bit nervously. I took his hand and shook it.

"I'm-"

"Jowan, ex mage of the circle and now conscripted to the Grey Wardens. Everyone knows you already because of what happened in Redcliffe."

"O-Oh that's right."

"Jowan we really need to focus on your confidence." Talen said.

"Look Jowan I'll tell you straight up. Alistair will probably want to kill you, Leliana doesn't trust you, Sten also wants to kill you, Oghren doesn't give a nug's ass."

"You stoning right!"

"Wynne doesn't trust you, Morrigan actually likes you, which is really weird. Eren dislikes you, Derek dislikes you because you tore a family apart. The only person that gave you a second chance is standing right next to you."

"That doesn't make me feel better."

"What I'm trying to say I'm going to give you a second chance like Talen here. Zevran just wants to get into your pants but he wants to get in everyone pants so you have that going for you."

"But why would you give me a second chance?"

"Because sometimes we can't help the cards we're dealt with sometimes."

"I…I have no words to use to thank you."

"Don't thank me yet. Thank me once I kill something that tries to kill you. So when are we going to do this joining thing anyway? It's not like we have darkspawn blood lying around right?"

"And how do you know so much about the joining?" Talen said.

"Oh and you guys keep it all to yourself right? Eren told me."

"And here we are trying to keep it a secret." Talen mumbled.

"Um you did say that it might kill me."

"Might is the word but at this point we don't have anything that can make the joining for you. We need darkspawn blood, Archdemon blood, and some lyrium to make the slurry."

"And…the slurry is used for what?"

"You drink it and if you survive, boom! Grey Warden." I said. Jowan paled at that.

"You just had to sum it up like that didn't you?"

"Hey you conscripted him. If Eamon found out that you let him go after you did-"

"No he's joining. That's what you'll do to pay me and the others back. If not your death, then what you do for the organization."

"I'll try."

"Good!" I said, punching his shoulder.

"Ow!"

"Oh come on that wasn't hard. Anyway, I'm getting back on the cart." Jowan kept rubbing his shoulder and Talen chuckled. I leapt back on the cart and started to write again.

"Have you found anything from our nuevo amigo?"

"Nope I just gave it to him straight that some here want to kill him, don't trust him, and then there's you that wants to have sex with him."

"And how did he react to that news?" Wynne said.

"About Zevran? Nothing actually."

"No about everyone else."

"He's not too happy about it really considering no one here wants him but he is Talen's friend. I trust Talen and Jowan is a bit of a coward when it comes to-"

"Darkspawn up ahead!" Eren shouted. I immediately got off the cart as it stopped. Bodahn and Sandal went to the back. I got my weapons in my hands. There was a huge cluster at the side of the road, overturned wagons with the dead all about.

"There are 20 of them!" Eren shouted.

"21!" Derek said as an Ogre threw a large boulder. It narrowly missed our cart and wagon.

"Come on you sods!" Oghren said, plowing his axe through one. I kept myself back as Derek, Alistair, Eren, and Talen went to the front lines, Alfred on their heels. Morrigan was busy with her cold spells, wrapping the darkspawn up in ice. Leliana was shooting ones out in the back. They all swarmed on the 4 GWs. The Ogre stopping its way into the fray. We were getting overwhelmed. I growled and started to punch every single darkspawn that came my way, Sten right next to me. I saw Jowan for a brief moment, a look of panic in his eyes before a darkspawn got into my way.

"Damn it!" I shouted, bashing in the Genlock's head. I heard a shout from the road and saw Jowan come barreling down, a knife in his hand. It reminded me that we didn't give him a weapon that he could use. He got near the fighting and plunged the knife into his hand. I saw a spray of mist obeying his command. It went into each and every darkspawn. His form grew red and he gave out another battle cry. The darkspawn started to groan and claw at their skin. The battle was paused for a second and I looked at them. Their skin started to bubble.

"Get out of the way! You'll be infected!" Jowan said.

"Go!" Eren shouted. Every one of us that wasn't a GW scrambled out of there and just on time. The darkspawn started to burst like meaty bubbles. The Ogre lost both of its arms from the effect.

"Holy Jesus."

"Maker's breath."

"What did you do?" Morrigan asked Jowan. He looked extremely pale.

"Don't just stand there! Kill it!" Jowan shouted. The Ogre was still charging even with the loss of both of its arms. Derek went and smacked its face with his hammer. Then did a roundabout and got it in the back of the knee causing it to kneel. Alistair went up, slashed the face, and stabbed through the brain. All the other darkspawn were dead in the snow, a real bloody mess. Jowan was sitting down in the snow, all of us giving him some surprised looks.

"How did you do that?" Talen said, wiping off the blood from his face.

"Oh, hehe, well I controlled my blood to go into their own bloodstream. Once I got the hang of all of them, I boiled their blood."

"You boiled their blood from the inside? Most intriguing!" Morrigan said. I've never seen her this happy. "This technique is truly-"

Then Jowan fainted in the snow.

"That must have used a lot of blood." Talen said, coming up beside him and healing his hand. Jowan looked extremely pale. "He'll live of course. I'm just going to have to teach him restraint."

"Aren't you glad the guy is on our side?" I said, shoving Alistair lightly.

"I really don't care. I'd rather him be in Aeonar than with us."

"Hate him that badly huh?"

"You have no idea."

"Are the monsters gone?" Bodahn shouted.

"Yes! We'll need to wash off as much blood as we can." Eren said.

"Take a minute. We'll be resting in the wagon." Wynne said.

"And where are we going to put the sleeping prince?"

"Just toss him on top of the packs in the wagon. It's gonna take some elbow grease to get the blood of their armor." Oghren said.

"Nia, help me with him." Talen said.

"Coming."

We tossed Jowan in the cart. He took up a good space so only one person can ride. Talen went ahead and decided to stay there. Wynne moved to the wagon with Zevran, Sten, and Leliana. I'm here just waiting until the GWs can clean their armor. They were bathed in blood and guts. Might as well end it here until we set up camp.

-/-

Everyone is already asleep.

We made camp after traveling a little longer. The darkspawn blood was really tough to get off for the poor GWs. Jowan finally woke up.

I was humming a slight tune as I was making my soup. Sten and Leliana went out hunting and brought three rabbits. I had to make two pots for everyone. Talen is still a glutton.

"More."

"Talen that was your second full, and I mean to the brim full, bowl. I'm not giving you anymore." I said.

"But I'm still hungry!"

"Don't whine like a kid."

"I'm still growing."

"That's a stupid excuse."

"I think Jowan needs an extra serving."

"No means no."

"Please!"

"Leliana, can you tell him to heel?" I said. She giggled and took him by the arm, presenting half of her bread to him. He was satiated for the time being. I got a bowl and went toward where Jowan was. Alfred was staring at him intensely. Jowan had a bone in his hand and was about to give it to him.

"Alfred no. Do you remember the last time you had a rabbit bone?" Alfred whined. "Don't give me that puppy look. Go on." He whined again. I heard Morrigan coming over to where I was.

"Yo Morrigan, come to join us?"

"No, I am here to give this back." Morrigan said, a half eaten hare in her hands.

"Ah." Alfred whined.

"I do not want this you furry flea-bag. A half putrid hare does not belong in a women's unmentionables."

"Looks like he likes you."

"Does not matter if he does. Here the mangy mongrel can have it back. Tell him not to do it again."

"You heard the lady." Alfred didn't care. He just took it and ran off with it. Morrigan went off with Eren behind her heels. I groaned and rubbed my face.

"Is there something wrong?"

"Morrigan and Eren."

"Oh."

"Here, you need proteins to help with blood production. You need to lay off on the blood magic. You may not be a good mage but don't put down your winning hand too early. We can't have you dying now can't we?"

"Oh that well. I was just, truly I didn't expect that much to come out. Mmm this is good."

"Thanks. Everyone around here loves my soup."

"Thank you again for accepting me."

"Oh I haven't accepted you Jowan, you've done way more bad than good. I'm only here to give you a second chance. You have to prove to everyone here that you want to do the right thing. What you did for our group, that's the first step but I will say this; you have any idea of betraying us and my blade will be the first to cut you down." He gulped my soup audibly before I smiled at him again. "So make sure you don't ok?"

"Y-Yes."

"Good. Eat the soup, there's more in the pot if you want some seconds." I said, going over to my tent that me and Wynne shared. I sighed and rubbed my face.

"Tired Nia?"

"Somewhat. We're really close in getting all our allies. Just the elves and then? We need to stop the civil war and band together to fight the darkspawn."

"Amazing that we have all come so far in such a short time. Even more for a couple of our companions." Wynne said, looking over to Leliana and Talen who were whispering to each other. Morrigan and Eren were already in their tent.

"I know huh? Who would have thought that they would get together?"

"I do not approve of it however."

"Let it go Wynne. We can die the next day, let them have some form of happiness."

"And when it will come to making the sacrifice in the name of duty? Will they be able to make the choice with their partners involved?"

"Things won't get as dire as you say Wynne. Besides, they make each other grow you know? Anyway, I might as well go and get some rest. We have a long way to go until we reach the Brecilian Forest." I go into my tent. I wrote down what I could. I needed the rest.

9:31 Wintermarch 25th

As we were traveling, Talen decided to refresh Jowan's memory of spells so he wouldn't have to rely on blood magic the entire time. It was a sight to see and not in the good way.

"No Jowan, you need to focus on the range of the fire! If you put too much mana into it, it'll just get out of control in your own hands." Talen said. Jowan and Talen were walking again. I was in the wagon messing with my ocarina with Derek, Alistair, and Leliana. Wynne, Zevran, and Sten were in the cart.

"I'm sorry." Jowan said, burning his hand for the second time.

"Did you ever think Talen would be a teacher?" I asked.

"Nope. Amazing that he has such patience with him." Derek said, carving something again in his hands.

"Well Jowan is Talen's friend."

"I'm surprised he conscripted him after everything that has happened to him. Some friend he is, Jowan nearly sent Talen to Aeonar!" Alistair seethed.

"Nearly killed Arl Eamon as well and he killed Isolde." Derek said in a low voice.

"Yet he repented and has seen the error of his ways." Leliana said.

"Does it matter if the Maker forgives him? He has already done so much wrong." Alistair said.

"Wow, I can feel the hatred coming from you two."

"How can you give him a second chance as well? You saw what happened to Isolde!" Alistair seethed.

"I know but all the blame can't be put on him. Isolde should have sent Connor to the circle first thing instead of hiring Jowan. Jowan…all he wanted to do was to go home. He was put into a corner because of the way everyone treats mages."

"Mages aren't something to scoff at missy."

"But if we actually treated them like humans instead of a walking waiting abomination, then we wouldn't have so many problems like with Jowan. Mages could at least travel with a few Templars, see the world or do something productive. Instead, they're in cages. I know that some prefer it but you can't keep someone caged like that or something worse will happen."

"But we can't let mages have all the rights that we have. Look at what happened to Uldred and look at the Tevinter Imperium!" Alistair said. "They own slaves, the government is run by mages, and blood magic is freely practiced. They nearly doomed the world with their magisters going into the Golden City and turning it black. Mages brought the darkspawn to us."

"You still think that mages should run around freely missy?"

"…I think mages are humans and they need a few freedoms. I stand by my opinion."

"OW!"

"How can you not even do a simple ice spell?" Morrigan wondered loudly. Jowan had frozen his own hands. Talen face palmed and Morrigan looked close to killing Jowan.

"You have to wonder if Jowan is going to be more of a trouble than a fighter." Leliana said.

"He does suck as a mage." I went back to playing my ocarina. There was tension in the wagon now with the debate between me and Alistair. He was scowling and continued to glare at Jowan. We covered good ground throughout the day. When night came, we found a clearing to make camp. There was tension between Alistair and I because of our differing opinions. I did my soup and went to sit near my tent. Leliana and Talen were together eating. Morrigan kept on trying to teach something to Jowan.

"You cannot perform the simplest spells of any tree in magic. How is it that you are so inexperienced? Did they teach you nothing in your circle?" Morrigan said, rubbing her temple.

"Perhaps he is more adept in using a weapon?" Zevran said, coming up next to them. "Here, use this mace that I have gotten from our dwarven merchant friend."

"Well you did use one to get to your phylactery." Talen said, watching him. Zevran unsheathed his daggers.

"Come." Jowan looked at the mace and then at Zevran.

"You aren't serious are you?"

"I am always serious when it comes to battle and to love." Zevran said, winking at Jowan. He squirmed uncomfortably.

"I don't…I don't feel comfortable-"

"Nia, why don't you come and spar with me? He needs to know how to fight in order to help our world saving group no?" I ate the last of my soup and got my daggers.

"Try not to make me spin too much. I just ate." I said, twirling my daggers.

"Are you really going to let them do this?" Jowan asked.

"You need to learn how to fight. You're not good at magic so weapons are the only thing we can think of right now. Watch and learn." Talen said. I brought up my daggers near my body and crouched. Zevran smirked at me, his daggers in front as well.

He took the first step and ran toward me. Our blades met and we had a battle of strength. Zevran chuckled as I pushed him off and tried to kick him. He jumped far enough to avoid it. Zevran twirled and I caught his dagger barely. His other dagger going for a stab. I twirled to avoid the stab and punched Zevran in the back lightly.

"I got the first blow."

"Of course, I allowed it mi niña." Zevran began his relentless attack. I parried for every attack but I was only on the defensive. Zevran knew how to attack and to make it into his advantage. I twirled, side stepped, evaded but he would always catch me. Then I slipped and fell to the ground, Zevran's dagger on my throat. Zevran chuckled. "It seems that I have won." I smirked. I reached out and he was about to grab my hand, when I grabbed the wrist that held the dagger and pulled him down. I came up on top of him with my dagger at his throat.

"Remember Zevran, we fight dirty." Zevran gave out a full laugh before I got up and helped him up.

"Would you like to replicate this but without the daggers?" Zevran asked.

"Zevran no. Go on Jowan. You can try to hit him with the mace but, as you can see, Zevran is a big boy. He can take care of himself. I'm going to bed."

"Are you sure-"

"Just go ahead and train him Zevran."

"She…she's really good."

"Stop staring at her Jowan, she's married."

"What!?" I laughed as I went inside my tent. Wynne is peacefully sleeping right next to me. I yawed. Time for night, night.

9:31 Wintermarch 26th

So we found the elves in the most actiony manner.

By the morning we already saw the forest from the trail we've been taking. The Brecilian forest looked green even during the winter.

"My boy and I are going to continue to Denerim messere Eren. Should we meet again, please feel free to browse my wares." Bodahn said.

"It was nice traveling with you Bodahn. Stay safe. Maker preserve you." Eren said. Our wagon continued on the dirt road that went into the Brecilian Forest. Morrigan had turned into her raven form to scout for us. Alfred was jumping up and down, sniffing everything. Soon the trail became harder and harder to travel. It was unnaturally warm in the forest and really, really green.

"It's weird. It's like the snow never touches this place." I said.

"The veil is weak here. I would not be surprised that this is what allows the forest to stay this way even during the winter season." Wynne said.

"It is a very beautiful yes? Much more different than what we have seen so far."

"I would have never believed that I would travel here." Jowan said in awe.

"Well you can travel anywhere as long as you're a Grey Warden. You just have to make sure you're doing it in the name of the Wardens."

"The trees are starting to bunch closer together, the wagon won't be able to go farther even if we tried." Eren said, coming down from Lily. I heard the ambience of the forest. For some odd reason I kept on seeing shadows in my peripheral vision.

"Time to scout ahead then. Eren, Alistair, Wynne, you all stay here. The rest of us will start exploring. See if we can find these elves." Derek said.

"Ah these pretty elves are just hiding from a real man."

"Sure Oghren that's why they're hiding from us." I said sarcastically.

"Come we shouldn't stay standing." Leliana said. She and I went ahead and began to explore. I heard the rush of a small river near us. I saw something move right next to us but when I looked at it, it was gone.

"Why do I get the feeling we're being watched?"

"You have sensed it as well? I thought I was being paranoid."

"Sometimes being a little paranoid is good for you." I went to the river and dipped my fingers in it to see if we could use it to bathe later on. It was cold but not freezing cold. It was the type of cold you could get used to when jumping in a pool. "Oh, this feels nice." Then I heard a wolf howl and my blood ran cold.

"Did you hear that?" Leliana asked, taking out her bow. My hands immediately went to my daggers and I stood with Leliana at my back.

"Hear what? The howl?"

"The birds have stopped singing as well." It was true, it was like someone turned everything off. The forest was unnaturally quiet. I heard another howl, much closer to us.

"Oh this is not going to be good." Two werewolves sprung from the bushes. I heard the twunk from Leliana's arrows getting one in the eye. The werewolf grabbed his head in pain, but the other continued his assault. I shoved Leliana out of the way and the werewolf pushed me to the ground. I grabbed its mouth to keep it from mauling me. Leliana stabbed its throat with her dagger and the other came rushing toward us. I hit it in the muzzle, but it backhanded me into a tree. Leliana kept on hitting it with her arrows, but it wouldn't stop trying to claw her.

"Leliana!" I shouted as she backed into a tree and the werewolf launched. Out of nowhere, a barrage of arrows struck the werewolf, blood pouring on the ground and on Leliana. It slumped to the ground, dead. I ran up to Leliana who slid down to the ground.

"What happened?" Talen said, coming toward us. "Did…is that werewolf?" I heard the bushes and the shrubs move. Five Dalish hunters had their bows tracking all three of us.

"Talen, don't move."

"Why are you here shemlen?" One with slicked black hair said. Talen put up his hands to show he wasn't trying to harm them.

"Whoa, we're not here to cause-"

"We found the Dalish!" Derek shouted from somewhere in the forest.

"I told you they were hiding!" Oghren shouted as well. I almost wanted to laugh at the randomness but the Dalish still had arrows in their bows.

"My name is Talen Surana, Grey Warden. I'm here to talk to you Dalish for help fighting against-"

"We know of the blight flat-ear. How do we know you are telling the truth?"

"We have ancient treaties back where my other companions are. Will you allow us to get them?" The black haired one glared at us before motioning to lower the bows.

"We will allow to get your treaties but know we have more hunters trained on you."

"Well at least that explained all the stuff I've been seeing in my peripheral vision."

* * *

**We have found the dalish and are nearly getting to the end! Whoa! It's going to be awesome!**

**Shout out to PFCDontknow and FearaNightmare for favoriting/following this story!**

**Buggy300: **_Thank you for the long review and I hope that the future chapters will make you happy_ :3  
**FearaNightmare: **_Aw I love you too! :D That's the one thing I don't like about fanfiction is that you find something that is so awesome and...hiatus or a dead fic. I'm not like that, I stick to my stories unless my computer deletes everything or I get flamed. This one is my baby though. I got all these ideas for all the way to Inquisition, nothing is going to stop me! So be ready!  
_**EG: **_Lol I saw that someone also recommended Iron Nia and you're the first to recommended Solia but we'll see :3 I have the romance in my head and I have a feeling that the readers are going to guess at something else besides it. :3  
_**Shattered Soul 2021: **_At that point Eren just chalked it up to Nia being Nia. She knows things sometimes and is slightly weird about it all. Yes the laws of cause and effect! Just by being in the world she allowed Derek, Eren, and Oren to live. Nia doesn't want to change too much because if she does, then the things she knows won't be true anymore. So think of her as the side character that helps the main character. Jowan was supposed to enter the game and teach the player blood magic but was taken out really late. Oh yes poor Nia but Nia is strong, she'll get through all the stuff I'll put her through, MUHAHAH! *ahem* anyway, thanks for your review! :D_

**Nothing says 'I love this story!' than a review! :D**


	46. Nature of the Beast

9:31 Wintermarch 26th Continued

"Leliana are you ok?" Talen asked.

"I am fine, just shaken."

"We weren't expecting to be attacked by two werewolves. I almost peed myself."

"Too much information Nia." We went over to where the wagon was. There were more Dalish hunters with their bows trained on everyone that was there.

"Are you alright?" Eren asked, looking at all the elves around us.

"We're good. Just go get the treaties." The black haired elf gave them another motion and all of them put away their arrows. They openly glared at us and I felt really small being surrounded by them. Eren got the treaties from our packs in the wagon and gave it to the black haired elf.

"These are the treaties that you signed long ago. They tell us that you agreed to give us aid during a Blight if we need it." The Dalish glared at him, reading it.

"These have been signed by our people. You have not lied to us. How many of you are the Wardens?"

"My name is Eren, Alistair, Derek, and Talen. We are all Grey Wardens. These are our companions on our quest to battle the Blight." The black haired elf nodded.

"Fine. We shall lead you to our caravan shemlen but we warn you, any attack to our people and you will all be dealt with swiftly."

"Of course." Eren nodded. The Dalish started to walk in front of us and I let out a breath I didn't know I had.

"Damn, I almost broke my back with all that tension." I whispered.

"They don't like humans." Alistair said.

"You think?"

"Come on, get into the wagon for now. All we can do is follow them." Derek said. I decided to walk. Jowan, Talen, Leliana, and Derek went into the wagon. It was weird how these Dalish were able to find passages in between the trees that allowed for quick passage for Eren and Lily. Most of them kept glancing and glaring at our way. The only ones that they didn't glare at were Oghren, Derek, Talen, Zevran, and Alfred. Alfred put his muzzle in my hand to comfort me but I have never felt so much hatred in my life. I was always a nice person, well most of the time anyway. I never had someone dislike me, much less hate me. It was strange, the bad strange. I loved the Dalish, especially through the playthrough in Dragon Age. I loved their culture, language, how they want to try to keep their people alive. Being a human in their midst was strained though.

So we walked through the forest with the hunters leading us to their clan. I couldn't take the tension anymore and reached for my ocarina. A hunter didn't know what I was doing, and I saw her take out a dagger next to me before I got my instrument out.

"Stop it Lyna. Do not embarrass us." The black haired one said. Lyna put away her dagger. I blew on my ocarina. Some of the Dalish looked curious at it. This was a forest so I decided to play Saria's song. That always made my mood better. I heard a few scoff at my playing and another chuckle. Zevran came up beside and hummed the tune next to me. I switched it up from a few songs I learned through ear on a few soundtracks. I tried to keep the mood happy. The tension in the group was thick like pea soup.

Eventually I put away my ocarina when I got tired of it. I let out another breath and more Dalish glared at me.

"It seems we have drawn the hatred of our future allies no?"

"Zevran they don't mind you, you're one of them. They don't like humans."

"Ah if they would only speak to you mi niña, they would find the utter beauty that is you."

"Thanks but I don't think these guys are up for talking at all."

"Such a shame since many of them are so lovely." He winked at a passing hunter and she gave him a raised eyebrow before smirking.

"You never stop do you Zevran?"

"Do not worry mi niña, you are the only one in my heart."

"Wow I feel so special." I said flatly. We eventually arrived in a huge clearing. There were many elves scattering about. Kids playing, woman making clothes, there were nearly a hundred of them. Then there were their portable houses that looked more like land boats that anything. Of course most of the elves openly glared at us with hatred, besides the ones I already wrote about.

"Only the Grey Wardens are allowed to see our Keeper. The rest of you will be going into a clearing that have approved for your group." The black haired one said. "Lyna, take them to Zathrian. The rest of you, follow me."

"We'll be back shortly." Eren said. The black haired elf led us to a small clearing, well away from their caravans.

"You are free to camp here shemlen. You are free to enter our camp but with no weapons. Your presence will be tolerated…for now."

"Um thank you for saving us earlier from the werewolves." I said. The elf looked taken aback from me saying that before nodding and heading back to the camp.

"You'd think that all these elves had sticks up their asses." Oghren said.

"We have been through much Oghren. It is not uncommon to find them treating humans this way." Zevran said.

"So you lean toward being a Dalish elf?" Jowan asked.

"Me? Oh no, I consider myself Antivan first, Dalish second. My mother was a Dalish hunter before falling in love with my father who was a woodcutter. She left her clan to be with him but he died shortly after. Then she had to work in a brothel. To this day, I do not know who my father is."

"That is…very sad, I'm sorry."

"Oh? Will you allow that apology to extend to your bed?"

"It's amazing how he's even able to get everything to turn around into an offer." I said.

"I should let him teach me. I'd like to get another in the sack."

"Oh God Oghren, I did not need that image in my head." He laughed at my misery. I saw a few elven kids looking at us curiously from a tree near where we were. Alfred whine and they all giggled.

"Go on if you want to. I doubt they'll be able to stop you." I said. Alfred barked and went to play with the kids. I sunk down to the ground, not being able to do anything except wait.

"I wonder what they are talking about." Wynne said.

"Probably the whole werewolf thing. Those need to be coming from somewhere. People don't ordinarily walk into the forest unless they had a good reason. The werewolves are becoming a problem. I bet you they want us to get rid of them and then they'll offer to help us."

"You seem to know a great detail of this." Leliana said.

"It's just putting two and two together." And playing through the story about 20 times. I saw Zevran trying to inch his way toward Jowan who was leaning against the wagon. I shook my head but I grew bored again. "Well, I've waited long enough. I'm going into the camp, anyone want to come with?"

"As long as they look at us like that, I would rather stay."

"I think I might be able to preoccupy myself here."

"I wouldn't want to go in there."

"I shall stay."

"I will go." Sten said.

"Oh? Awesome."

"Might as well see what these elves are bringing to the world." Oghren said. We three left our weapons with our packs and went into the camp. The children really liked seeing Sten. They had a game of tag or a game of 'who can touch the qunari and get away with it.'

"They seem to like you." I said.

"Hmph."

"Why not Oghren?"

"There are so many reasons why…" I said. I looked over and saw Varathorn and his apprentice working the wood. It was an interesting thing. Steel armor was worked with heat but this was worked almost the same way you would make wooden instruments with water and low heat. I caught myself just staring the work before Varathorn noticed me.

"And you are?"

"Oh! Sorry, um, I'm-"

"One of the Grey Warden companions I would assume."

"Yeah. That is amazing, how did you do that?"

"Have you come to try to steal our techniques of our ancestors?"

"What? No, no, I'm just…too curious for my own good I guess."

"You must forgive her. She has no tact." Sten said.

"Wow, thanks Sten." Varathorn chuckled.

"It is unusual for a shemlen to be curious of our ways. Most would just call us 'knife-ears' or some other derogatory name. Either that or they start attacking us without hesitation."

"I'm sorry." I said slightly bowing my head.

"…You are a very odd shemlen to show such sincerity."

"I don't want any hatred between us. I know that humans haven't been very kind to you but there's always an exception to the rule, always someone different."

"That is true. Well, what brings you here?"

"I was bored waiting for the Grey Wardens, um, the black haired elf, he didn't mention his name, said we could go into the camp, without our weapons, if we wanted to."

"Nerion is his name…by any chance, will you be going into the woods?"

"More than likely so we can deal with your werewolf problem. Why?"

"We have been running low on our supply for ironbark. Our keeper, Zathrian has forbidden us, besides the hunters, from going into the woods. It's a wood that gleams like iron when naturally fallen. We use this to make our weapons and armor. If you could find some for us, I would be appreciated. If you find enough, I might be able to make something for you."

"You'd do that?"

"You have shown a kindness that is rare in your people while we have stuck to our hatred for many years. It is as you say, there is always someone different."

"I…thank you. So only from a tree that has fallen?"

"Yes and it will gleam like iron."

"Alright, I'll make sure to look for some."

"We should head back to our camp, Kadan. The Grey Wardens would have finished with their talk with the Keeper."

"Yeah, thank you Varathorn."

"Dareth shiral."

Sten and I headed back into the camp where the four GWs were present. The tents were already set up as well. Eren and Talen both had scowls on their faces.

"So you came back from the talk with the Keeper? What did he say?"

"He showed us the victims from their constant werewolf attacks." Talen mumbled.

"He said that the only way to cure them is with the heart of the main wolf called Witherfang who dwells in the forest." Derek said. "We need to go find it and then he'll help us with the Blight."

"We have what we need to do so why are you guys looking like he killed your best friend or something?"

"Because this doesn't seem right? I don't know, he seemed very…how would you call it Talen?"

"Secretive. There's something that he's keeping away from us. We just don't know what."

"The only way we shall know is if we go into the forest, no?"

"The Dalish hunters has given us the way in. We might as well go. The wagon and Lily will be alright here. Gather your supplies." Eren said.

"It seems that Eren and the others are suspicious of the Dalish's keeper, yes?" Leliana said.

"Well whatever he said to them made them react this way. All we can do know is keep going." Well that's all I can write for now. We'll be heading out soon.

9:31 Wintermarch 27th

We got the elves and the werewolves to compromise! Yes! Ok so tons of information, got to write it all down before I lose it. Right now we're on our way back to Redcliffe even though it's gotten pretty late. Oh my eyes are going to hate me tomorrow but on to writing. Candle don't fail me now.

I last left off when Eren and the GWs came back suspicious about Zathrian. It didn't matter though since we had to go and do their dirty work for them anyway. We were at the gate at the start of the Brecilian Forest when Morrigan (who was away in her raven form this whole time) came to greet us.

"Tis about time!" Morrigan said.

"The Dalish barely lets us move around their camp, calm down." Talen said.

"We had to talk to the Keeper for some time. What have you seen in the forest?"

"Sylvans, werewolves, darkspawn, bears, and wolves. We must all be ready for battles, including you." Morrigan said, motioning toward Jowan.

"I-I'll try."

"No, you will."

"Give him a break Morrigan, he sucks at using spells."

"Hey!"

"We won't get anything done as long as we stand here and talk, let's get moving!" Derek said. I checked my daggers and we all began our trip inside the Brecilian Forest. The ambiance was pretty loud, shrubs moving, birds chirping, the occasional growl and howl. Even though we were probably going to be attacked by many things, I couldn't help but feel serene. The place was so beautiful and green. There were moss, vines, and flowers everywhere.

"I wonder if there are any Andraste's Grace here…" Leliana said.

"Andraste's Grace?"

"Oh it was a flower that my mother loved. She always smelled like them. They were white with a red center."

"It's a forest so there's plenty of flowers. If I find some, I'll give them to you." Talen said with a blush. I looked away. I was happy for Leliana but I couldn't deny that I was also a little jealous. I missed that with my husband.

"All this mushy business is making my beard itch."

"Are you sure you are not itching for something else Oghren?" Zevran asked.

"Of course I'm itching for take, but there are no takers in our group."

"For an elf and a dwarf, you two think almost the same."

"Ah mi niña you wound me."

"There are no similarities with the elf and me!"

"Wolves!" Eren shouted. Two wolves and two werewolves honed in on us coming from out of the bushes. Sten defended himself against a wolf and did a mighty swing at it. It threw the wolf at the river near our side. The other wolf got an arrow in their throat by Leliana. The werewolves were tackled by Eren and Alistair who fended them off. Another blight wolf came by and Alfred went teeth to teeth with it. I ran behind the werewolves, as did Zevran. We both launched a deadly strike at their back. The werewolf that I attacked grabbed my leg and threw me into a tree. Eren smacked its muzzle with his shield and stabbed its stomach. It took me a while to get the dizziness out of my head. Derek and Oghren smashed the other werewolf in between their weapons and the beasts were down.

"That should be-" Eren started before another werewolf jumped out of the trees. Derek got pinned down and the werewolf's mauls were inches away from bitting down on his face. Oghren used his axe to cleave it but the werewolf had already took off Derek's helmet and slashed him down his face. Derek gave out a yell of pain before Sten decapitated the wolf.

"Derek!" Talen shouted. Derek was holding his face in pain, making minor grunts.

"Heh, looks like one of the buggers caught me."

"Nia grab some water from the river." Talen said. I nodded and filled my waterskin to the brim. I went over as Talen tried his best to heal Derek. I gave him the waterskin and he washed away the blood. It was a nasty cut, three long ones from the start of his brow, to all the way down to his chin.

"The good thing is that they didn't gouge our your eye. The bad thing is that your resistance is making this hard to heal."

"Bah! Don't worry about that! Scars only make a woman want you more!" Derek guffawed.

"Maker, and you deal with this all the time?" Jowan said.

"We've gotten used to it." I shrugged.

"Alright, I've closed the wound but it's going to scar. You're also missing half of your beard." Derek gasped.

"No! Say it isn't so!"

"Yep, the priss is right Derek. You're now half a dwarf."

"Those sodding beasts! Wait until I get my hammer on them!"

"Let's save it for the werewolves. We shouldn't stay too long in one spot." Eren said.

"Let us move on." Wynne said. We kept on going until I heard the loud roar of a waterfall. That's where we met with Swiftrunner. The werewolves growled as our group headed toward them. Swiftrunner's coat was lighter than the ones that came with him and he had various scars on his face and chest. Their bodies were massive with muscles covered in gnarled fur. They easily stood taller than Sten.

"Hrrr, it seems the watch-wolves have spoken truthfully, my brother and sisters. Our enemies, the Dalish, has sent a human group in response to our attack, in order to put us into our place. What bitter irony."

"They can speak?" Talen whispered harsly.

"To think we have thought they were mindless beasts." Morrigan said.

"How is it that you're speaking?" Eren asked.

"We were once the mindless beasts you spoke of but we are no longer. Let the thought claw at your blood and chill your spines."

"Do you have a name?" Eren asked.

"Hrrr, you speak to Swiftrunner. I lead my brothers and sisters that make this forest their home. Hrrr, turn back and run to the Dalish. Tell them that you have failed to gain the heart of Witherfang. We shall gladly watch the curse, that they have unleashed upon us, do the same to them. We have suffered for far too long and we will watch them as they writhe in pain."

"Why you-"

"Derek!" Eren shouted. Derek stayed calm and Eren took a breath.

"Our group will do you no harm. I would like to converse with you instead."

"Eren what are you-" Alistair started before Eren glared at him to shut up.

"Do not feed me your lies human! Hrrr, we know that Zathrian has sent you and your group to destroy us! He has never wished to converse!"

"It sounds like you know a great deal about Zathrian."

"No…we have never met. Hrrr, he would not walk away from me alive, this I swear."

"Then why do you hate him so much?"

"Hrrr, of course you would know nothing human. You know nothing of us and less of the elf that has sent you on your task. You are a fool and we are done talking. Run while you still can. Run to the pathetic Dalish and tell them that their suffering will continue, that their doom will go on."

"I'm sorry Swiftrunner. I don't want to fight you but we can't retreat as well."

"Hrrr, we do not wish to fight you either human but we cannot trust you. Come brothers and sisters, we shall withdraw for now. The forest has a will of its own and will deal with intruders as it sees fit." Swiftrunner and the two werewolves with him quickly ran from us.

"What is your problem? Can't you see that making friends with the werewolves isn't the right way to go?" Alistair said, shoving Eren.

"They took away my beard!"

"And they attacked the Dalish!"

"Didn't we all say that Zathrian was keeping something from us? We knew that he wasn't telling us everything we he showed us the victims. The werewolves probably know the truth. We can't have things get worse while we're here. We have to stop this the quickest way possible and if that means we have to talk to them, then we will."

"Is that your reasoning for allowing us to use him to kill Isolde!" Alistair shouted, pointing at Jowan.

"Uh-"

"Alistair I don't think this is the time for-" I started.

"No, you could have put a stop to it Eren but you let Talen and Jowan go ahead with their blood magic ritual. They killed Isolde!"

"And what would you have me do Alistair!? Stay and defend the village? You saw those villagers and how close they were to despair, they had no more fight in them! And what of Connor? Would you have landed the killing blow? Would you have dug your sword into an innocent boy who only wanted to save his father!?"

"Enough!" Sten shouted. Eren and Alistair glared at each other and I felt our group dynamic go down a couple of notches. "We are not here to bring up the past. We are here to gather allies."

"Besides Alistair, you're never the one that has to make the choices. You're always on the sidelines watching me, Derek, or Eren make the hard decisions for you!" Talen said.

"I said enough!" Sten shouted again. Alistair recoiled from what Talen said to him. There was a tense silence between us all.

"…We're not going to get anything down if we just stand around. Come on." I said, going to the head of the group. I heard them coming to follow me and I let out a sigh. I felt a headache coming in. As soon as I crossed the bridge to go further into the forest, five rabid werewolves were all upon us. Talen let out a fireball which began to burn their fur but they didn't care. Their eyes were wild and foam was coming out of their mouths. The DOS team went up first to tackle them. MTWJ kept in the back along with Leliana, who shot arrow after arrow. Zevran and I made hit and run tactics. These were beings of pure strength, we knew we wouldn't be able to fight them one on one. Eren and Alistair bashed in all of them in a box with DOS at the front lines. Morrigan froze one of them and Sten shattered it. Derek let out a battle cry and got a werewolf right in its muzzle. He squashed its chest to a flat pancake. Alistair slashed at another werewolf with his sword before cracking its face with his shield. One managed to get out of the box and head for the mage group. I ran and sunk my daggers into its back. It bucked wildly before Alfred suck his teeth into the rabid werewolf's neck. It went down after losing a lot of blood.

"These beasts pack a wallop." Derek said, wiping the blood from his cuts that opened again. I heard something that wasn't a part of the forest. It sounded like shuffling and falling. I went over by the river bank and saw an elf, crawling on the floor.

"Hey there's a survivor! Hey, can you hear me?" The elf groaned.

"W-Who…comes?"

"Don't move you're losing too much blood. What happened to you?" Talen came up behind me, his hands filled with healing energy.

"My…my scouting group were sent…to find Witherfang and…(groan) bring his heart…it…attacked…I." He fell to the ground unconscious.

"Do you think he'll live?" I asked.

"He will but it's better if we get him back to the camp. Derek, Leliana, and I will make sure he'll make it to camp."

"And why are you taking me priss?"

"Because you keep bleeding. We'll meet you in a bit." Talen said. Derek took the elf and carried him like a sack.

"There's no point in waiting for them to come back. Let's keep going." Eren said.

"Talen is our healer we can't just-"

"We need all our allies as soon as we can Alistair. The Blight won't wait." Eren said. Alistair seethed on the inside and Eren continued on the path.

"Hey Morrigan, can you see if you can calm him down?" I said to her.

"And why should you ask me?"

"Because Eren cares for you."

"He does the same for you."

"It's not the same anymore and you know it. Go and calm him down. We can't have two Grey Wardens fighting with each other."

"Of course, we would not want that." Morrigan said, going up to Eren's side.

"This all looks bad." Jowan whispered.

"It is as you say my friend."

* * *

**I'm almost done with the story! I got a poof of inspiration and I couldn't stop writing, I'm 2-4 chapters away in my backlog from finishing this! Of course I'm still going to take off a few more weeks after chapter 50 to edit and clean up the story some more. :3**

**Shout out to PCheshire and Elphaba Rose Wilde for favoriting/following this story!**

**EG: **_My fridays are actually tuesdays, the life of a cook, no nine to five, monday through friday unfortunately. lol there can be no true Zia since Zevran is always trying to sleep with everyone_ lol  
**Shattered Soul 2021: **_I think this chapter answers that question, just the next couple of chapters gets to how. No Jowan isn't smitten lol and how has Nia broke everyone's heart? The only ship tease is between Zevran and her since Eren and Morrigan got together. Zev x Jowan? You'll have to keep reading. Zevran always finds his way lol  
_**PetalsOfSin: **_lol Eren and Nia can't happen since Eren and Morrigan got together, sorry! x3_

**Please Review :3**


	47. Brecilian Forest

9:31 Wintermarch 27th Brecilian Forest Continued

Morrigan was quietly talking to Eren as we made our way further into the forest. Eren wanted this to be over and dealt with. The four GWs can already sense the darkspawn horde coming closer in I think. The winter was holding out strong outside the forest but not for long. We passed another bridge and I saw something gleaming near a small stream. It was the ironbark that Varathorn had told me about. I was going to go get it when Eren and Alistair tensed.

"Darkspawn ahead!" Leliana shouted, sending out her arrows. Alistair and Eren went up as the stomping of an Ogre came close to us. I evaded a few arrows from a darkspawn archer as another came up to our group.

"Eat this you thunder humpers!" Oghren shouted, getting a darkspawn in the chest. I twirled out of the way and Sten went up to fight against the Ogre. The archer was right in front of me but I didn't realize that two more Hurlocks were right behind it. I rolled out of the way of a shield bash and Alfred came up and tackled one. The archer got an arrow in his head so it was only one on one with the last darkspawn near me. I twirled behind it and sunk my daggers into its shoulder. It reared back and I fell off the cliff into the gravestone that had the wards.

"Mi niña!" I heard Zevran shout as I got up with a few bruises on my back. I heard the clash and the rumble of a boulder thrown. I got up as the darkspawn that I battled with was hit in the head by Jowan. The darkspawn tumbled down the same cliff, dead.

"Not bad!" I said, running up the cliff. The Ogre was giving the group trouble until Oghren cut open its calf. Sten was not far behind in getting the other one. Alistair jumped on top of it and deal the killing blow to the heart.

"Status!" Eren shouted.

"We are well!" Leliana said for Wynne, her, and Morrigan.

"The beard is still kicking!"

"No harm done."

"We're ok as well!" Jowan said. I groaned in pain, feeling a crick in my back.

"Mi niña are you hurt?"

"No, I just fell. My back isn't feeling too good."

"Let me see…" Wynne said, letting her energy go through my back.

"Ah, much better."

"Let us continue then." Morrigan said. I looked toward the ironbark and decided I'll get it on the way back from the ruined temple. We kept on walking when I saw the path that would take us to the Great Oak. There were trees that didn't look quite right. Eren walked right into the path…where the trees became alive. Our first fight with the sylvans.

"Careful the spirits have possessed the trees!" Jowan shouted.

"You think!?" I said. The sylvan reached into the earth and roots sprouted and grabbed onto everyone minus Eren, Sten, and Oghren. I felt the roots grasping and squeezing on me.

"Good thing I have an axe!" Oghren shouted but the sylvan kicked him out of the way. Sten shouted and cut one of its branch hands. It kicked him away too. Oghren was quick to get up and began to chop away at its tree leg. I felt the roots surrounding me starting to weaken before Oghren successfully got one of its legs off. It fell to the ground, its leaves shaking down. Eren went with his sword and stabbed it where its chest was.

"That won't do anything! Cut the 'head' off!" Jowan shouted.

"Easier said than done!" Eren said, being pushed away by the sylvan. I didn't know what to do in this situation. Talen's fire would have done well here. That's when Oghren did a jump and chopped of its head.

"That's how you do it kid!" Oghren said, spitting on the ground.

"Ugh, why must you be so disgusting?"

"Part of the Oghren package." Oghren chuckled.

"Why do I get the feeling we're going to be seeing more of these?" Jowan said.

"Kinda makes you wish you were good at fire spells, doesn't it?" I said.

"Is everything in this forest trying to kill us?"

"Hmm, trees, wolves, bears, darkspawn, maybe the occasional frog, I think so." I said.

"We must move on lest the beasts continue their attack."

"You heard Sten." Eren said. We were attacked by another sylvan but this time we were ready for it. Alistair, Eren, Oghren, and Zevran weren't caught by the roots this time but the rest of us were.

"Damn it!"

"This is not how I pictured freedom!"

"Then you might as well learn fire spells and get us out of this mess!"

Eren and Alistair focused on the legs primarily. The more branches you were able to cut off, the less the sylvan had power. The roots withered away and Oghren chopped off the head again.

"If only Talen was here, his pyro tendencies would really work in this situation." I said.

"The fact that you are held against your will does lead into the imagination mi niña."

"No wonder you wanted the rope when we were going to Denerim Zevran."

"I did not want to hear that." Alistair said. Another sylvan but Oghren and Sten both got caught. Morrigan wasn't though. She froze a few of the branches. Zevran and I were able to shatter them and Alfred jumped to grab onto the branches to drag the head down. Another chopped off. I saw the white bark of the elder tree near us when three, yes, THREE, sylvan went to attack us. The only one not caught in the roots? Jowan.

"Oh how is this fair?"

"Damn son of a nug!"

"You better do something or I will kill you when I get out of this!" The sylvan all started to crowd around Jowan, reaching for him with those sharp branches. I saw a ball of flames in his hands, a look of concentration and he let it out. Too bad he got caught in it.

"Wah!"

The roots let us go and we all attacked relentlessly at the mesh of branches and leaves, trying to weaken the sylvan. Sten got one down with Asala, Oghren took another, and Alistair managed to behead one using his shield. Jowan threw himself into the river and he was lightly scorched.

"Well…at least he did something." I snorted.

"Ha, ha, the next time I'll leave you in the roots."

"What about this one? It's not moving." Alistair said, mentioning the Grand Oak. Then it came to life. Everyone got their weapons out, until it started to talk.

"Hrrrrm, not an elf nor a wolf, what manner of beast is thee, that have come before this elder tree?" Eren and Alistair gave each other incredulity looks.

"Um we are humans, well most of us…" Alistair mumbled the last part.

"Ahhh yes, thy ones whom build homes far and wide, who succumb most easily to pride. So small, so brief of life, yet all too quick in thyne stride for strife. You who are blind to the lives you take, the chaos you have sown in thyne wake. Allow me to welcome thee. I am called the Grand Oak, sometimes known as the Elder Tree."

"A rhyming tree? What manner of spirit would be at work here?"

"This is something…I couldn't even fathom or even think of meeting!"

"It is a rhyming tree, not too odd from the things we have seen."

"At least I don't have to chop off its head."

"Amazing. The world is full of marvelous creations, ones that we could never have thought possible."

"Wow…"

"And unless thou thinkst it far too soon, might I ask of thee a boon?"

"Is it me or does everyone always ask things from us?" Alistair said.

"What are you asking Grand Oak?" Eren asked.

"As I slept one early morn, a thief did come and steal an acorn."

"And you want it back, I take it?"

"Through the years I have watched, and through the years I have grown. The rivers that have run, the trees that fallen onto the stone. Through the years I have become alone, the future I cannot see and the unknown. My being, my seed, must return to my side, if it cannot then I shall die."

"We cannot go and search for you acorn unless you give us something in return." Morrigan said.

"Hmmmm…my wooden skin has some magic, see, and part of it I can grant to thee."

"Just wooden skin? What could it do?" Jowan asked.

"The forest shall see thee as a tree, no harm would come to thee."

"I would not want to continue fighting these sylvan and if his branch can help us, we should get his acorn no?"

"Fine, we will help you Grand Oak."

"Go to the east to find this man. I shall await, do what thou can." The Grand Oak curled on himself again.

"Wow, that was…trippy." I said.

"Well, one more thing added to the list." Alistair said.

"To the east then." Jowan said. We left the Grand Oak and retraced our steps. We walked closer to the waterfall and were attacked by three werewolves. Sten, Oghren, Alistair, and Eren came and clashed with them. One got Alistair by the scruff of his armor and threw him into the mages. Alfred went and tried to attack, but was kicked away by one of them. I ran toward them, my daggers in my hand.

"Out of the way!" I saw that Talen, Leliana, and Derek were right behind us. Talen summoned a large fireball in his hands. "Hit the ground!" They all spread out, the fireball hitting the werewolves. Derek shouted, hitting one in the chest with his hammer, and the third got arrows in their neck.

"Oh it's good to see you!" Jowan said.

"I told you guys to wait for me but did you listen? No."

"What took you so long anyway?"

"Miss Bard here had to do her best trying to set up a few lovers in the camp."

"They were very thankful that I brought them together."

"It's good that you've come back priss. We've been fighting trees that walk without anything good to hit them with!"

"Aren't you glad to see that your flame happy fingers get to do some work?" I said. Talen shoved me and I laughed.

"Anyway, we also have another quest by a talking tree called the Grand Oak to get his acorn back." Alistair said.

"Do we do anything normal around here?" Talen said.

"Nope."

"Let us be off then." Morrigan said.

"Also if we see a woman named Danyla, then tell me." Leliana said.

"So many quests, so little time." I said. We crossed the bridge further into the forest. This part of the forest wasn't as green and it was foggy as well.

"We have to be careful around here. Not being able to see puts us at a disadvantage." Derek said. Another sylvan came to life and Talen wasted no time in setting it on fire.

"Ha Ha! Burn tree burn!"

"Like I said before, Talen, you need help." We walked on and we encountered the barrier in between us and the wolves.

"Tis not good. This barrier has forbade us from continuing further."

"I'm guessing that the werewolves are just beyond this?" Alistair asked.

"More than likely." Eren said.

"Well, we might as well start exploring and see if we can find some way to get through it." Derek said. Three more sylvan attacked us. Talen did another fireball and they screamed as the fire burned them down. They didn't go down without a few kicks here and there.

"Trees, trees, and more trees. It's too sodding green around here." Oghren said.

"Missing the dirt and scum of the caves?"

"At least it was warm there!"

"Focus!" Eren said. We walked around some more and I got the feeling that we were going around in circles. Nothing looked the same, especially with the fog around us. The sun was high so we had light at least.

"Why do I feel we are going around in circles?" Zevran asked.

"Probably because we are? It's hard to see landmarks anywhere with this fog." I said. Then I heard the unmistakable growls and three rabid werewolves jumped out from the fog. I yelled as one got on top of me. Alfred shoved it out of the way and Sten wailed on it with his sword. Jowan got into the fray for once and used the mace to hit one in the muzzle that had been frozen by Morrigan.

"At least you're good for something!" Oghren shouted, slashing a werewolf open with his axe. The beasts lay in a pile of their own blood and I gave out a sigh of relief.

"Are you having some troubles mi niña?"

"The werewolves are all too strong for me to get a good hit in." Zevran chuckled.

"That is true. For now, I suggest we hit them with a few of my poisons or bombs, in order to make the fight fairer."

"Might as well." Then we saw Danyla, kneeling down on the ground.

"Oh great, another one." Oghren said, taking out his axe.

"Why isn't this one attacking us?" Jowan said. Leliana gasped and ran toward it.

"Leliana!"

"Tell me are you…Danyla?"

"Hrrr y-yes…I was..c-cursed into this…beast…the curse…it…it burns in me! Y-You…know of…my husband…? In, in my clan?"

"Yes he sent for word of you, to know what happened to you."

"N-No…he must…n-never learn…please…give this…my s-scarf to him…tell him…I died and…am with the gods. I beg you."

"I spoke to your husband, he's worried sick for you. There must be something we can do!"

"N-No…he needs to be…at peace…Please…do not let…him suffer…He doesn't d-deserve to know…Ah! The curse burns!...Please! End it for me! End me quickly!"

"There's nothing more we can do for her Leliana."

"I…I understand." I looked away when Leliana reached for her dagger.

"Gods…thank you…"

"I am sorry Danyla. I will make sure this reaches your husband. Andraste Guide you."

The group became silent after that. The fog was still shrouding our eyesight and made it very hard to navigate. We found ourselves wandering in circles again and again.

"Why can't these forests have a good path like in Orzammar? No circles or nothing, just one sodding stone path!"

"Getting mad at the forest is not going to do anything Oghren." I said.

"Makes me believe the forest is making us go in circles." Jowan mumbled.

"The forest is just a forest. It cannot think or make us go anywhere." Morrigan said.

"Well the veil is thin here. Maybe not the forest but a few mischievous spirits that are around." Wynne said. The four GWs stopped in their tracks.

"Darkspawn?" Eren said.

"Darkspawn." They ran toward where they felt it and two ogres were stomping right toward us. The DOS team all ran for them. Zevran gave me a poison and we both hit the opposing Ogres. Alistair and Eren worked on one, the DOS team worked on the other. It was a quick battle with both Ogres falling dead on the ground.

"If the darkspawn are already in the Brecilian forest, that means they have started to branch out." Eren said.

"That's not a good thing." Derek said.

"We need to be swift in gaining the elves alliance."

"So everyone shut up for a second." Talen said. Derek knocked his knuckles against the pillars of the ruin and Talen went for the tombstone at the end.

"Uh Talen, I don't think you should be touching that." Jowan said.

"What's the worst that can happened?" He disturbed the wards and a revenant appeared before us.

"You just had to touch the wards didn't you?" I said. The revenant pulled Talen, Jowan, and me toward it. Jowan screamed as the Revenant stabbed downward. I kicked him in time so the blade hit dirt instead of him. Oghren came and got it with his axe. The revenant pushed him away. I went behind it and pummeled the back. It grabbed me by my wrist and threw me into Zevran and Eren. It had a couple of arrows sticking out of its armor and then it pulled Leliana toward it. Jowan grabbed his mace and hit the Revenant over the head. It glared at him and Jowan did a weak laugh. Alistair came by and gave the Revenant a death stab and shield pummel.

"This was just like the Circle and the black vial." I said.

"Talen, don't touch anything." Wynne said. Talen pouted at us and we left the ruins. In the fog I was able to make out a small fire. We came closer to it and there was an elf. He had a wrinkled face with many tattoos and a mage staff behind him.

"Please friends, the forest is a danger to those who don't know the paths."

"Aneirin?"

"Do you know him Wynne?" Leliana asked.

"Wait…I…I remember you, your face is so familiar…but it was younger, stern, and more impulsive…Wynne?"

"I thought the Templars killed you."

"And they nearly succeeded. They ran me through while I was searching for the Dalish and left me for dead."

"I'm so sorry. I brought this upon you. I was a horrible mentor and too impatient for my own good. I'm sorry for the way I treated you." Aneirin shook his head.

"The past is the past Wynne and it should stay there where it belongs. I have put that behind me and you should too. I believe there was a destiny for me outside your circle."

"If you should want to, Irving will find some way for you to return to the circle if you want to. The Circle would love new mages like you, it needs to change."

"I have fond memories of Irving. Perhaps I will take you offer and see for myself but I promise nothing. It is late however and these woods aren't kind in the night. I am sure you have much to do."

"Are you sure you don't want to stay longer Wynne?" Alistair said.

"No, we have spent too much time on my affairs."

"Before you go I would like you to have this. It's a hardened sap of a tree only native to this forest. I have always thought of it as a lucky charm. I would like you to have it."

"Thank you Aneirin. May your gods smile on you."

"And may yours, you." We left Aneirin at his fireplace, continuing to wander the forest. I knew we'd be left wandering unless we got the magic bark from the Grand Oak. We needed to find that hermit.

"Who was he Wynne? If you don't mind me asking."

"My first apprentice and my greatest regret. I was a harsh mentor for him, not being able to understand his reluctance to use his gift. I pushed him too hard, too soon. What he needed was time and patience and I gave him none. He ran away from the circle from a young age and the Templars tracked him down using his phylacteries. They never told me what happened to him. All this time I had thought that I pushed him to his own death. It gladdens my heart to have seen him flourish after all these years."

"I'm glad then that we had the chance to see him." Leliana said.

"I as well." We neared the stump of the hermit and there was a flash of magic where he appeared.

"Holy-"

"Oh dear and what have we here? Not a werewolf? Not a spirit or an elf? What are the woods coming too?"

"Be careful when dealing with this man. I can sense powerful magic coming from him." Morrigan said.

"Ah I see they have sent the mages again. Or didn't they? Did they send you?"

"A mad hermit, a talking tree, and a werewolf walk into a bar-" Alistair started but couldn't continue because he was snickering too much.

"Are you the thief that took the Grand Oak's acorn?" Eren said.

"Ah it is all coming together? Maybe I did, maybe I didn't! Who are you to say who is the thief? Ask a question and you'll get a question. Give an answer and I'll give the same! Oh what fun!"

"There's crazy everywhere in these woods. Better stuck in a cave instead of here." Oghren said.

"Well we might as well follow this madman's request, no?"

"So I should ask a question?" Eren said.

"Is that really question?"

"I think?"

"No, real questions, not babble questions!"

"Be careful Eren. It is as Morrigan said, this man is a very powerful mage."

"Another mage to the guessing game? That's no fun! Will you play the game or not?"

"Fine. Ask your question."

"It is your turn to ask."

"Do you have the Grand Oaks' acorn?"

"An agent of the talking tree are you? Now it is all coming together. Yes I do have that silly tree's acorn! It should have locked it up tighter, not sleeping throughout the day if it didn't want it stolen. You want it then you must trade for it! No branches, no leaves, nothing from that silly tree. But that was all my answer, all you get."

"Alright, ask me a question then."

"Hm what should be the first question? Ah yes, what is your name?"

"Is he serious?" Jowan whispered.

"My name is Alfred." Alfred barked.

"So you claim? You think you are fooling me but ah, I know the game, I know the trickery when I see it. I'm onto you just so you know! But now it's your turn in the game, ask, ask away, go on!"

"Do you have anything to trade?"

"Yes I do have many lovely things to trade. The acorn, a helmet I found, and a book I just finished reading. If you have something interesting to offer, I just might trade!"

"Here is a book that Cammen gave to me when I was able to successfully bring him and Gheyna together." Leliana said.

"Right, this book for the acorn."

"Ah a book! Something new to read or, better yet, something useful to wipe with besides all these leaves."

"He really is mad isn't he?" Alistair said.

"I think it's time that we stop this game."

"I see you are about to report to them are you? I know who you are, you cannot make them find me." The mad dude chuckled insanely. Then, since Alfred was being curious, he reached into his stump. "Your hound is stealing from me. I know what you are and you weren't sent by them. You are a thief!" He summoned a rage demon and started to fling spells at all of us.

"Did not I say that I will kill that mangy mongrel of yours?!"

"Less talking, more spells!" Eren shouted. Morrigan froze the rage demon and I shattered it. The hermit kept on teleporting everywhere, and we weren't able to get a good grip on him. He used his force to make the gravity stronger and we all kneeling on the ground.

"Someone do something!" Talen shouted. I saw Jowan reach for his knife again. He plunged it and his blood sent out a mist. It went into the hermit. He stopped teleporting and was screaming until his blood blew up from the inside.

"Next time, can we skip the mad hermit and just kill him for the acorn?" Talen said.

* * *

**Ah Alfred, you curious dog you. Ameranthine guys, Ameranthine and did you see the new DLC for Inquisition!? KYAH! Ok, fangirl moment over.**

**Shout out to Dforce76 for following/favoriting this story!**

**AkenaNeddam: **_thanks for reading! Go play Origins, it's awesome!_ :D  
**chaosrin: **_Haven't seen you in a bit, well Nia doesn't feel comfortable taking charge right. She lets the Grey Wardens do their own thing. The way she sees it, she's a side character following the main character.  
_**Shattered Soul 2021: **_I know, Alistair came up in that cutscene and ripped into the player but I'm like "dude, you don't say anything during this, so shut up!" Alistair never takes the lead on anything, he just follows so he just has to deal with it._

**Please Review :3**


	48. Werewolf Ruins

9:31 Wintermarch 27th Brecilian Forest Continued

Morrigan hit Alfred on the muzzle after the fiasco with the mad hermit.

"You are too curious for you own good, you mutt. The next time you accidentally cause another person, animal, or thing to attack us, I will personally cut off your dangly bits." Alfred whined while trying to keep his bits away from her.

"Now I know she's evil since she's treating Alfred badly." Alistair said.

"Alfred did manage to alert a High Dragon to us though." I said.

"Which nearly killed all of us I might add and destroyed my leather armor." Zevran said.

"Now that we got all that taken care of, let's go back to the Grand Oak and give him his acorn." Eren said.

"You can go. I'll be waiting next to that fog magic barrier that the wolves set up."

"You think the magic in the Grand Oak's bark will disperse the magic?" Wynne asked.

"Hey it could work." Eren, Morrigan, Sten, Derek, and Oghren all left to follow the path back to where the Grand Oak was. The rest of us loitered around the fog barrier that kept us from going further.

"What do you suppose is beyond the barrier anyhow?" Alistair said.

"Werewolves, dragons, demons, spirits, ruins, some 100 year old cheeses probably." I said, sitting down on a boulder.

"Well the werewolves are to be expected, but the rest? You have quite an imagination mi niña."

"You can't go by life without being creative in something or else life would be way too boring." I said. I sighed again.

"Do you think they got lost again?" Leliana said.

"I'd bet on it." Alistair said.

"I did not think you were a betting man Alistair."

"With the forest the way it is, I'm sure of it." I pulled out my ocarina and started to play it to pass the time. Leliana sat next to me and rested her head on my shoulder. I didn't know how long I played but I soon saw some figures coming out of the fog. Alfred barked, jumping around Eren.

"We've come back and Morrigan has the bark."

"Tis a fine staff." When she got closer to the magical barrier, it dispersed.

"Well, would you look at that?" Alistair said.

"Good thing you didn't bet any money on it, huh?" Talen said.

"Time to go and follow the path to the werewolves." I said. We go through and there was a werewolf waiting for us, Swiftrunner.

"Hrrr, it seems you did not heed my warning. The forest has not claimed you, you have nevertheless stayed. Hrrr, we have underestimated you human. The Dalish chose their champion well but do not belong here outsider. Leave!" Three more werewolves came right behind him, growling and ready to fight.

"Why can't we simply settle this dispute once and for all? There is no need for more bloodshed." Eren said.

"Hrrr, you keep spouting your lies! We know the Dalish sent you to kill Witherfang! I will not allow that to happen!"

"We don't want to kill Witherfang. We want to know how all this started to help both of you." Eren said.

"There is no sense in believing you, I cannot believe you. Hrrr, all you humans do is intrude on our home, kill our brothers and sisters! We have seen this lesson throughout our lives. This is our home. Witherfang gives us the knowledge to learn our names and become beloved. We will defend our home and Witherfang with our lives!" Swiftrunner gave out a small howl and Alfred growled at him. The werewolves attacked first, running right through us, a barrage of fur and muscle. Most of us were tackled down, Swiftrunner aimed for Eren. He grabbed Eren's leg with his mouth and threw him in the air. Alfred tackled Swiftrunner before he could do Eren harm. Eren landed hard. All of us got up before the other werewolves would begin to maul us. DOS went up to fight the werewolves. Zevran took out another bomb of poison and threw it at them. That only made one center on him.

"Maldicíon!" The werewolf tried to rake Zevran with his claws, but Jowan came up and used his mace to attract his attention. Swiftrunner became boxed in with Alistair and Eren on either side. I came up behind Swiftrunner and punched his back numerous times. Then, as Eren lined up a killing blow, a white wolf with vines running up on its body came and tackled him down. Swiftrunner fled while Witherfang howled in front of us. They all ran away once Witherfang appeared.

"That went well. You think they'll invite us over for tea?" Alistair snarked.

"I told them our intentions. Only time will tell if they took it to heart."

"At least you're talking and not priss over here. I don't think they would have believed another elf."

"Hey!"

"Let us move on." Sten said. We saw three more werewolves in front of us.

"Hrrr! We are invaded! The forest has not claimed them! Run brothers and sisters, protect the lady!" They all ran back into the ruins that were in front of us.

"There is more to all of this." Wynne said.

"Huh, looks like you were right about the ruins Nia." Jowan said.

"See? What did I tell you?"

"I'll only believe everything if we see everything." Talen said.

"When do we not go into spooky ruins? Why can't we have a mission where we can relax in a beach or a hot spring?" Derek said.

"We can only dream Derek." Leliana said.

"At least this beats the forest…" Oghren said. So into the spooky old ruins we go! We walked through the door and I was amazed at how well these were preserved.

"Tis amazing how these ruins have survived for so long in such a desolate place." Morrigan said. "So extraordinary."

"You have a wonder for these places aren't you?" Eren asked.

"These ruins hold stories far older than what is written. I would only imagine how to delve in the history of these ancient buildings."

"Got to admit, the stone has held up pretty good." Oghren said.

"We can admire the architecture later." Sten said.

"It's plainly awesome that the tree roots can grow in here without damaging any of it." I said. There were massive roots coming down from the ceiling, intertwining with the stone, almost as if it was supporting it. The light was showing through the windows, giving the place an ethereal glow. Lanterns were lit to show passage into the ruins. Then the fake walls opened up to the side of us and skeletons snarled at us. There were four skeletons warriors that had fangs in their mouths. These enemies I was able to fight with. I went to the two over on the right side, Zevran, and Jowan following me. I knock my knuckles against one, Jowan got the other in the head. Zevran stomped on its skull until it cracked. I dislodged the other one's head. The other two on the left were easily dispatched by Oghren and Sten.

"Pah, these skeletons gave us no trouble. When can we find the real wolves to give us some sport?"

"Be careful what you wish for Oghren." Alistair said. We went down the roots that were acting as stairs to go down to the lower level. As soon as we touched down, more werewolves came to attack us. Leliana took out her arrows and got one before it came to us. It angered the second one that came toward us. Eren bashed it with his shield and Sten cut of its head before it had time to get up.

"Let's explore the room a bit before going forward." Eren said. I found another fake wall that led to nowhere that only had a few old bones. Then there was a long staircase to a locked door. I knew that behind that door was the Lady of the Forest. The door couldn't be opened.

"We have exhausted all other doors, let's go and explore more of the werewolf haven shall we?" Alistair said.

"You're been very talkative Alistair." Wynne said.

"He's only doing it in order not to feel tension or awkwardness with Eren and Talen." I said plainly. Alistair flushed in embarrassment and Talen rubbed his face and groaned.

"You had to bring it up again huh?"

"She has no tact." Sten said.

"I know, I know. Let's just go deeper in the ruins."

"May I go deeper into your-"

"Not the time Zevran."

"Then Jowan, may I-"

"Um can't we talk about this another time?"

"Ah such a shame."

We go through the door and I immediately notice the webbing everywhere. It was on the floors, the walls, coming down from the ceiling. Giant spiders only grow into giants where the veil is weakest. One dropped door in front of us and crawled its way toward our group. Derek and Oghren got their big badass weapons and squashed it like the bug it was.

"Yeah! You kill that spider!"

"And you tell me I have a problem." Talen said.

"Spiders are evil. I might not be afraid of them anymore but I still want to see them get squashed." Talen rolled his eyes and Leliana giggled. Six more came out of the adjacent rooms. Two of them poisonous. Leliana shot out her arrows and Talen got flame happy again. The poisonous ones came over to us. Jowan was shaking slightly as one got closer to him. Zevran was all too happy to stab it as it came closer to him. Morrigan froze the other one and I shattered it with a few punches. The other four were taken care of by DOS and Eren and Alistair.

"Stupid spiders." I mumbled.

"Oh that is one thing you didn't mention when listing off the things we would find!" Leliana said.

"That's because spiders are everywhere. You can get away from them that easily."

"Excuse me while I harvest their glands." Zevran said.

"You harvest their poisonous glands?"

"He makes poisons Jowan, assassin?"

"You're an assassin!?"

"We have common ground, do we not?"

"Do we really have to bring that up every time?" Jowan said, rubbing his temple.

"You did poison Arl Eamon and this guy won't let you forget it." I said, shoving Alistair lightly.

"And for good reasons too…" He mumbled. Zevran took out the poison quickly and we left the spider carcasses as we journeyed farther into the ruin. We heard a growl through the walls. I felt myself get startled and I grabbed onto Zevran's arm.

"Oh sorry, I got scared for a second."

"You can hold onto me for as long as you want mi niña."

"It's amazing how you are able to flirt at any given moment." Jowan said.

"It's a weird talent of this." Talen said. We came down the stairs into a large cavernous room. We heard the flapping of wings overhead and another room. A dragon came in front of us.

"This is what I call a challenge!" Oghren said. The dragon roared at us and took to the walls, crawling on them, balancing itself using its wings. I grabbed nearby logs and threw them at the traps that I saw in front of us. The dragon launched itself at our group and everyone got tackled down.

"It's smaller so it has higher speed and dexterity!" Eren said. "Aim for the wings! Ground it!" Leliana shot at it and Morrigan did a few cold spells. That made it go in front of our group but, even with its wings out of commission, it was able to run around quickly around our group. It threw small fireballs here and there and all of us had to run around like crazy to make sure we didn't get burned. Leliana made sure to give a few good shots. One was good enough to hurt its leg.

"Now!" Derek shouted. The DOS team charge. The dragon reared its head and struck Derek away with its powerful neck. It twirled and gave them all a tail whip. Wynne let off a burst of earth to hit it and Morrigan summoned another ice spell. It slowed the dragon down for me to jump on top and plunged my daggers into its back. It roared in pain and Zevran went underneath and stabbed a few weak points underneath its wings. Eren and Alistair soon came up and slashed the creature. It slumped over, dead by blood loss.

"Dragon, you guessed right again." Alistair said, a confused look on his face.

"Eh, lucky guess."

"Whoa! Look the dragon has a treasure hoard!" Jowan shouted.

We all ran over to where Jowan was and there was so much gold! Jewels, and even shiny weapons.

"Whoa."

"I think I speak for everyone here to carry as much as you can." Eren said.

"No need to repeat yourself boss!" Oghren said. Did we get everything? Well mostly everything, our packs could only carry so much but we were loaded!

"I can't believe how well cared for this longbow is." Leliana said, the long bow in her hand looked like it glowed with various carvings everywhere.

"The dragon had good taste." Alistair said.

"The werewolves should be deeper inside. I'm surprised they lived with it." Talen said.

"It kept out unlucky scavengers." Morrigan said, looking at the various bodies around the dragon's nest.

"Well we're all full up on treasure, heh, time to get going."

"It seems these wolves carved out a path of their own." Zevran said.

"Good, I was just missing my caves." Derek guffawed. We walked through the cave and followed the lanterns. As soon as we saw the connecting cave, Talen stopped.

"Are you seeing what I'm seeing?"

"There is a corporeal spirit right in front of us." Morrigan said.

"Are we all seeing this?" Jowan said.

"A lovely figure of the spirit of a woman? Yes I believe so." The spirit took one look at us and ran through the other entrance, shouting something in elvhen.

"Did you understand that Talen?" Alistair said.

"I'm an elf, not Dalish."

"Zevran?" Leliana said.

"I could not catch what she was saying."

"The veil is weak here. We must be prepared to see spirits or demons." Wynne said.

"Your guess is, how are you so right this time?" Alistair said.

"I don't know. I was just naming things off the top of my head." And remembering all the times I've played the game.

"Let us continue." Sten said. We followed the spirit through the cave and ended up in the ruins again. The skeletons came to life, all six of them with various weapons. Sten and Oghren got the ones that were right in front. Talen blasted the three to the left. Eren got the only one to the left.

"Is it me or are these fights getting easier?"

"We are a team of thirteen. We're practically a small army." Alistair said.

"It makes me sad as well that we are not participating in the battle." Zevran said.

"You need to run in girly, these things won't be standing around too long when the Great Oghren comes along."

"More like Oghren with ale breath."

"What did you say thunder humper?"

"Deep Roads licker."

"Son of a lyrium addled nug."

"Stone licker."

"Why you-!"

"Are they always like this?" Jowan asked.

"You'll get used to it."

"Unfortunately mi niña has not decided on an endearing name for me."

"I don't use endearing names unless it's my husband."

"We are wasting time again." Morrigan said.

"Everyone, shut it." Eren said. We carried on and I noticed more webbing on the walls, and what looked like a carved out tunnel for spiders.

"It-"

"No more talking, just killing." Derek said. I pouted and stopped where I was and saw Derek walk right into a webbing, trapping him, and calling on the spiders to our group. There were four poisonous spiders. Two right behind the group, and two in the other hallway. The webbing was all over the place and was incredibly hard to move in. I jumped on spiders and punched it. Alfred went for the other one. Eren, Derek, Sten, Oghren, and Alistair were all caught. Wynne used an earth spell to tear the webbing from the walls. After I punched the spider to a pulp and Jowan broke the back of one, the others went for the two that were still alive. They shot off poison which, thankfully, didn't get anyone. Leliana hit one full of arrows and Talen set it on fire before Oghren split it in half. The other was boxed in by Alistair and Eren and squashed flat by Derek.

"And that's how-"

"I said no talking!" Eren said to Oghren.

"Hmph! Can't tell me to shut my mouth…" He mumbled. We came out of the hallway into another wide open room with a small boy elf in the middle, walking around. All the mage in the group looked at each other, probably debating if we should even try to speak to it. As we got closer to it, the elf boy spoke.

"Mamae?"

"Is he looking for his mother?" Jowan wondered

"Mamae? Mamae! Mamae!" The elf boy slapped outward, trying to get away from something.

"We will not hurt you. Please, what are you seeing?" The boy looked at Wynne before running off and disappearing.

"This makes me wonder what happened here…" Leliana said.

"Nothing good if the spirits linger." Talen said.

"Let's go." Eren said. Unfortunately we couldn't go because skeletons rose up all around us. We were closed in.

"Now we're talking!" I shouted, running up and cracking a skull. Zevran went pass me to get the archer right in front. I heard the cries of battle behind and almost everyone got in a hit with the skeletons. They were easy to take down once you knew to aim for the skull. I twirled my daggers as we finished crushing them. Talen went over to the room that the boy entered as we figured out which hallway went where.

"This ruin is confusing." Jowan said.

"One only knows where to look to continue forward." Morrigan said.

"Hey, I found this in a sarcophagues. The boy showed me it." Talen said. He found the elven tablet that would open where the elders slept.

"Do you think he led us to it?" Leliana said.

"Probably. I'm wondering where this leads to though."

"We shall see soon enough." Morrigan said. Talen carried the small tablet with him and we advanced. There was a hallway that forked. There was a door that led to where I knew the tablet would explain the steps for the ritual. The other end would have skeletons and the ability to gain the arcane warrior tree.

"Split up?" Derek asked.

"Split up." Eren said. Talen, Leliana, Wynne, Derek, and Sten went toward the door. Eren, Alfred, Jowan, Alistair, Morrigan, Oghren, Zevran, and I went the other way. We found the room with three skeletons. Alfred jumped on one, I jumped on the other, and Oghren decapitated the last. One crushed skull and another that was torn off, and they weren't any trouble. Then seven more came to life. Morrigan froze the three that were in the room. Alfred shattered one and Alistair came to shatter the rest. I ran up the stairs we climbed up and the four were there battling against Zevran and Eren. I rolled and two came down. I cracked both of their skulls while everyone else did the same or took off the head from the spine. I let out a content sigh and put my daggers away.

"Look at all these tomes! Do you believe they would have any lasting information?"

"I doubt it. They don't look in peak condition." Eren said.

"What's this?" Jowan said, picking up the blood red amulet. "Wah!"

"What happened?" Alistair came up, his sword drawn.

"No, no, no, no, It's ok. I didn't mean to startle you…"

"What are you doing Jowan?" Morrigan said. He put a hand up to tell her to keep quiet.

"Is that a…phylactery? Here? And tis not dried out at all?"

"How is that possible after all these years?" Alistair said.

"Just some blood in an amulet, nothing special."

"You…you have been trapped in here for all this time? Oh…I see…a way out? What do you mean 'Arcane Warrior?'?"

"Arcane Warrior?" Alistair wondered.

"Oh does this gem is a living soul that retained tis memories?" Morrigan said, sounding almost giddy.

"Is that ringing a bell to you witch?"

"My mother has told me many stories about how mages were able to manipulate magic to strengthen their bodies, allowing them to equip plate armor or heavy weapons to aid them in battle whilst retaining their magical prowess. If this gem holds to key to this information, twould be invaluable indeed!"

"It's asking me to…release it. To give it an end."

"Not until you let it give you its knowledge."

"Right…it agreed. The altar…" Jowan went toward the small white altar near the tomes. "Alright, here it is. Please teach me." The gem vibrated and Jowan's body glowed for a second. Alistair jumped slightly but I laid my hand on his shoulder and shook my head. Jowan placed the gem on the altar and it shattered.

"So? Were you successful in gaining the knowledge?"

"I…I think so. Alistair may I?" Alistair shrugged and tossed him his shield. Jowan should have crashed to the floor along with the shield but he held it aloft like it was made for me. Morrigan laughed loudly.

"So the gem gave you the knowledge of an old arcane art. How riveting." I saw Eren flash her a small smile.

"Good, now we can fully equip you with some good weapons and armor. I'll be taking that back now." Alistair said.

"Hey you guys done sniffing around old books?" Derek said.

"We were able to go into what the tablet showed us. It was a resting place for the elders, from long ago…" Talen said.

"Well, we have just uncovered a specialization of magic that has been lost for centuries!"

"Is Morrigan happy?" Leliana said.

"She is indeed." Zevran said.

"Alright we've done the small quests, now let's go talk or get the werewolves." Derek said.

"Right." Eren said. We walked down the ruined hallways. Three more skeletons but, since the whole group was together, they were taken down by the DOS team.

"I'm beginning to suspect there are more than just skeletons in these ruins." Wynne said.

"And what does your beautiful mind tell you my lovely Wynne."

"There are some strong demons around." Jowan said. Four more skeletons came from another room and up the stairs where we were at. Leliana did her famous skull crack with the new bow and I tripped a skeleton and cracked the skull with my boot. It felt good. The other two were frozen and shattered by Eren. We all gathered in front of the next door.

"Why does this feel ominous?" I said.

"Because there's something behind that door." Talen said, opening it. There were six archers all over the large room.

"Careful there are traps on the floor!" I shouted. "Jump over the pressure plates!" No one managed to trip them. They were very well plotted but as soon as I found one, I moved the leaves and debris near it so the others could see. I rolled into a pillar trying to make sure that no arrows hit me. The good thing was that these were skeletons and were easily dispatched. The DOS team made sure to check their steps, Eren and Alistair got the ones farthest into the room. The archers lay dead, again, on the ground. I got up and grabbed all the big rocks, trying to set up all the traps in the room.

"That couldn't be it…" Jowan said.

"Tis true. There is one more we must defeat?"

"More demons? A dream come true." Oghren laughed. We left the open room and followed to two main doors. We opened them and two more skeleton archers. Alfred launched himself at one and Jowan was able to take the other one.

"At least you're a fast learner in something." Talen said.

"They're just skeletons. Nothing bad about making sure the dead stay dead." Jowan said.

"There's two more behind you." Talen said.

"What!?" Talen let off a small fireball and the skeleton pieces fell down the stairs.

"And now there is none!" Zevran said.

"We're getting too much fun killing these." Alistair said.

"Yep."

We went down the stairs and saw benches, cages, and instruments dealing with experiments. Everything seemed dusty and the blood was all dry. The fact that someone was doing something was disturbing.

"This is why the veil was sundered." Morrigan said.

"I'm guessing that big glowing ball in the middle of the room has something to do with it?" Alistair said. As soon as he said that, the Arcane Horror rose and had a fireball in its hands.

"Demon!" Jowan shrieked. I ran toward it but Oghren was the first to try to catch it. There were carvings in the floor though. Oghren was electrocuted and the Arcane Horror teleported to another carving. It summoned up more skeletons to fight us. Leliana and MTW were the only ones to be able to hit it. Leliana's arrows phased through it and it shrugged off Morrigan's cold spells. It wasn't until Wynne hit it with an earth spell that it staggered. Eren used this to be able to go into the field. He did a few good slashes until the weird carving did it's lighting attack again. Eren was thrown off. That's when I noticed the lightning barrier only came on when the carvings were lit.

"The carvings turn on along with the barrier! Wait until they stop and then you can hit it!" I shouted. Talen did a fireball and it knocked the Arcane Horror away from the glowing carving, causing it to stop. Sten came up and did a mighty swing, cutting off the Arcane Horror's hand off. Two more skeletons came to life and I got one skull to crack. The other was done in by Jowan. Sten was able to throw the Arcane Horror off the carvings. That's when DOS and EAA came in and took over with sheer brutality. The Arcane Horror was a mess of bodily parts on the floor after they got through with it.

"Werewolves, spiders, demons, walking skeletons, and I still haven't found the hundred year old cheese." Alistair jibbed.

"We have a lot of ground to cover, you never know."

* * *

**I had way too much fun writing in the forest. So I'm in Amaranthine now which is awesome! Also chapter 50 is coming up which means another break to edit/add things in from a few earlier chapters.**

**Dforce76: **_It's a big DLC which I can't wait for! PS4 users have to wait unfortunately :( but I got my writing to keep me company. Thank you for loving my story!_ :D  
**Buggy300: **_Yes i forgot how thrilling an experience was romping through the forest and I forgot how long it was as well. Yes the Landsmeet and the Archdemon battle has been written! I got all the chapters and I'm so happy! :D Of course this means the usual 3 day update is still in check and no Nia isn't going to run away from Kirkwall but...oh well can't reveal too much can_ i?  
**chaosrin: **_Oh there's going to be so much hardship that all the stuff she went through in this story was child's play, seriously. After all a lot can happen in Kirkwall during those 6 years...  
_**EG: **_egads this story discontinued? Perish the thought! No I'm done with it, all that's left is to continue updating :3 Writing is so much easier when I have people like you reviewing :D  
_**Shattered Soul 2021: **_The good thing is we don't get to see anymore mad hermits like that dude later in the games. I have to wait for the DLC unfortunately, which I won't get to since I haven't even finished inquisition...TT^TT_

**Please Review :3**


	49. Compromise

9:31 Wintermarch 27th Brecilian Ruins Continued

We abandoned the place where we beat the arcane horror into a room that held sarcophagi. I saw the large mangled roots growing all over the place and a small deep puddle. There was no other way around.

"So…where do we go from here?" Talen said.

"Not sure, there aren't any doors." Derek said.

"We have to swim." I said.

"What?"

"Look we got here, and we have explored all the ruins. My guess? This deep puddle leads to something."

"Swim through a deep puddle and who knows where it leads to?" Alistair asked.

"Well, we do have a shapeshifter."

"Pity, I do not know any aquatic animals to transform into."

"Oh how are we going to do this?" Jowan wondered.

"We swim."

"Nia we do not know how long this goes for or how deep it is. We could very well drown before we reach the other side." Leliana argued.

"…I'm swimming." I unbuckled my armor.

"Nia!"

"Oh a show?"

"By the stone!"

"Jesus guys I'm still clothed underneath, get a grip! Actually…" I took off my shirt and my pants. "These are just going to slow me down."

"Are you not the slightest hint embarrassed?" Morrigan said, rubbing her temples. I looked myself up and down.

"No not really." Alistair was looked away red face as was Talen. Derek didn't care. Sten was tightlipped through it all, but I did see his eye twitch. Eren kept on making peeks. Jowan had his hands over his eyes and Zevran and Oghren were both openly leering.

"Why I say, your body was sculpted by the Ancestors themselves!"

"I must agree with my hairy friend here."

"Look all you want, but I'm going to go swim to the other side."

"Nia…be careful." Eren said.

"Trust me." I wadded into the pool which immediately didn't have a bottom. I took a deep breath and dived under. The light that was showing didn't penetrate the blackness in the middle but from where I was, I already saw another source of light. I swam for only about 20 seconds at most, making sure my strides were long and powerful. I saw the light up top and went for it. I took a breath and was at the other side of a cavern. "Well that didn't take long. It's going to be hard with the armor and clothes though." I took another breath and swam back.

"So?" Derek wondered.

"Well, as long as you take a really deep breath, even with the armor and clothes, you should be fine. The good thing is that there isn't a pool like this one. There's an incline to the top of the water. We should be alright." I said, grabbing all my clothes.

"Ah would you remain as such? I am rather enjoying the view."

"Leave the rest to your imagination Zevran, we have werewolves to compromise with."

"I can't believe you did that!" Alistair said turning but I was only up to my pants. "Andraste's flaming sword! Please put on your clothes."

"Geez, it's not like I was naked."

"Are women always quick to show a group full of men their unmentionables or is that just you?"

"Wow, underwear, so risqué." I rolled my eyes and buckled my armor on again. "You can look now Alistair."

"Well there is no time like the present I believe…"Wynne said, looking down into the pool.

"If some of you don't want to do this, you can stay here. I did my job, checked it out, and it was fine." I said.

"I think it is best if I remain at camp." Sten said.

"Oh ok, why?" I said.

"I cannot swim."

"Well if he's not going then I'm-"

"Jowan, I know you can swim."

"Sorry missy, I'm staying with the big guy."

"Same goes for old Oghren." Alfred whined.

"I'm afraid I will have to stay as well." Wynne said.

"Anyone else?" Eren asked.

"I think that was it." Talen said.

"Time to swim then." We took turns in pairs in case someone needed help. I went with Talen. Jowan went with Leliana. Alistair and Eren went together. Morrigan opted to go by herself as well as Zevran. We all came out the other side short of breath.

"Oh I do not want to do that again." Leliana said.

"But it was worth it to see your gorgeous body."

"Why do I get the feeling that you're going to have some alone time in your tent?"

"Ah! You have found me out mi niña."

"Why are we talking about this?" Jowan said.

"Oh and you didn't get a peekful from her?" Talen said.

"Weird how you got red when we have already done it once Talen."

"Oh snap!

"You are turning, look at your ears!" Alistair said.

"Will everyone be quiet!" Talen shouted.

"Be quiet!" Eren harshly whispered.

"We are a group of immature little girls and they are mostly men." Morrigan said. The room had several skeletons were on the ground but they were ripped apart in certain areas. The werewolves already re killed these ones.

We opened the door and we heard the growls coming toward us. We lost all our hardhitters so we only had Alistair, Eren, Zevran, and I as melee fighters. I rolled away when Eren and Alistair went to battle the first two werewolves. Morrigan froze one and I came up to shatter it. The other werewolf was pushed back by Eren. Jowan got his mace and hit the werewolf. It got distracted and Eren stabbed in its throat. We thought we won, before two more came out of nowhere. One jumped me and started to rip into my armor. I hissed in pain when I felt its talons rip my skin. I looked for the energy and it came for a quick second, almost as if turning on the volume high then muting it. I felt the glow and I punched the werewolf clean off me. It howled in pain before I smashed it to the ground. I felt the strength receding from me. The other werewolf was burned by Talen. I touched my stomach were my armor was in shreds and my bleeding cuts.

"Nia!"

"I'm fine Leliana. Talen, you have some mana for a healing spell?"

"Here." Talen came and laid his hand on my stomach.

"This does not bode well. How will you defend yourself from the creatures?"

"Hit and run basically. There's no other way. At this point, we have no choice. The others aren't here and we have to use everything at our disposal."

"Nia…"

"I'll be fine Zevran. Come on, we can't stay here forever." We passed the barriers and two more werewolves were waiting for us. They hit the ground running but I stopped everyone from walking. The two traps that I saw got both of them. Talen hit them with a fireball and Leliana got head shots with her arrows. Two more came out of the shadows and Jowan got one right in the muzzle. Zevran threw a poison at the other's face. It clawed at it with pain and Zevran stabbed it in the stomach twice with his daggers.

"Status?"

"We're all fine Eren." Alistair said. Leliana picked up the arrows she shot into them. She was already running low. It's been a long run for this ruin but we were almost done. We go down the stairs, the air becoming musky and humid. It smelled like wet dog.

"Oh does everyone smell that?" Jowan said.

"My nose hates me right now." Alistair said.

"It smells like the garbage in Denerim, only ten times worse." Zevran said.

"I hate you all so much right now." Morrigan mumbled. Eren opened the door and there were three werewolves standing in the center of the floor. All they did was stand there, growling silently. I recognized the wolf from the start of the ruin. This was the gatekeeper. Now if only there was a key master…The werewolves growled and snarled, they did not like us.

"Stay your rage brothers and sisters! Calm yourselves. Strangers, we cannot stand by while our people are slaughtered at your hand. I ask you in trust, will you be willing to parley?"

"About time…" Talen mumbled before Eren elbowed him in the gut.

"We are willing to speak with you."

"Of course. The Lady has sent me to retrieve you. She believes that you have not been told much of the events that have passed. The Lady will make sure no harm comes to your or your group, so long as your will to parley is an honest one."

"If you're talking now why didn't-" Jowan grabbed Talen and put his hand over Talen's mouth to shut him up.

"Please take me to your Lady." Eren said.

"Then come with me. I warn you stranger, if I see any harm done to the Lady, I will personally come back from the fade to kill you."

"Nice to see they keep their promises…"Alistair mumbled before Leliana shushed him. We followed the gatekeeper through a series of rooms and hallways, all with werewolves growling at us. They opened the final door and it was a large open door filled with roots falling with moss covering the walls. Flowers were on the roots that were being hit by the sun that trickled in. It looked like something out of this world. The Lady stood before us. Roots gnarled around her feet and legs covering her bottom half, with only her long black hair covering the upper part of her body, her arms covered by the same roots as her feet. Her eyes were all black with a shine from the light in the room. Her skin was a soft forest green

"She's beautiful…" Leliana whispered. Talen snorted. The werewolves that were gathering around her were growling and nipping at our heels, their stances wide with their claws out in front. Every one of them would attack us if necessary. I felt naked without the armor covering my stomach. Zevran had his hands close to his daggers and I as well. Swiftrunner and the other werewolves growled and growled until she laid her root covered hand on Swiftrunner's shoulder. He visibly calmed down and knelt before her.

"I bid you welcome mortals. I am the Lady of the Forest." Her voice echoing in the grand chamber.

"Thank you. I am glad that you have chosen to converse." Eren said.

"The human is lying my Lady! He will betray you just like all the others! We must kill all of them now!"

"Settle your rage Swiftrunner. It is because of our assumptions that this human would do us harm is why we have lost so many of your brethren. The people you have hoped to save. Do you want more of their deaths?"

"No my Lady. Anything but that."

"Then the time for battle is no more. We shall speak to this outsider and set aside our rage. I apologize on Swiftrunner's behalf. Many like him struggle with the nature of the beast inside him."

"As do we all, Lady of the Forest." Eren said.

"I see you have seen yourself what this nature does to all men. Few would claim this but this very nature has been cursed upon them. I can see in your eyes the questions that you have wondered, the things Zathrian has not told you."

"We've known about that for a while now." Talen said.

"How much do you know Lady of the Forest?" Eren asked.

"Have you wondered where this curse first came to be? It was Zathrian that created it and forced these creatures to suffer, as are his own people that have been suffering. Many centuries ago, there was a settlement of humans close to this forest. When the Dalish first set their home here, they sought to drive the Dalish away. Zathrian was a young man with a son and daughter that he loved and cherished greatly. While they were out hunting, the human tribe captured them both."

"Hrrr. The boy was tortured…and killed. The girl was raped by the humans…they abandoned her body and left her for dead…The Dalish found her and healed her but later she learned she was…she was with child…She killed herself."

"How cruel." Leliana whispered. Talen grabbed her hand.

"So Zathrian cursed the humans so they would turn into werewolves with no minds of their own? My best friend almost sent me to the worst prison ever and I forgave him."

"But how did the curse first start?" Eren asked.

"Zathrian, in his rage, came to the ruin and summoned an old and terrible spirit, binding it to a great wolf. Witherfang was born of this ritual. Witherfang sought the tribe of humans, killing a great deal. There were others, though, that became twisted and savage, cursed by the blood of the Great Wolf. They were the first of the werewolves."

"Twisted and savage, such as Witherfang himself is. The humans did not stay long and abandoned their tribe but the ones who were cursed were left. Abandoned in the great forest, mindless and pitiful beasts."

"Until I found you my Lady. You gave me peace."

"Swiftrunner was the first one I reached out to. I quieted his rage and showed him another side to his bestial nature. His humanity once again overtook him. He began bringing me others to awaken as well."

"Why did you attack the Dalish then? Did you want revenge?" Talen asked.

"In part. We want an end to this curse. I understand the crimes committed against Zathrian's children were grave but the crimes were committed centuries ago by people who have died long ago. We tried to be civil. Every time the landships came near our forest, we would send word but have always been ignored. We will no longer be denied."

"We spread the curse that twisted us to his people! He must end the curse to save them!"

"Please mortals, bring Zathrian here. If he hears these animals and listens to their plight, surely he will agree to end the curse." Eren gave out a long sigh.

"Alright. I'll bring Zathrian here. This curse has gone on long enough."

"If he refuses to come, tell him he would no longer find Witherfang and his people will never be cured. There is a door here in this chamber that will lead you back to the start of the ruins. Return and bring Zathrian with you as soon as you can."

"Then I'll go. All of you stay here. It'll be easier if I go alone." Eren said.

"Do be careful." Morrigan said nonchalantly. I smirked at her and shook my head. Eren nodded to the Lady and went out the door. The silence in the chambers was awkward and tense, filled with growling werewolves and falling petals.

"Sooooo, any old cheese you have lying around?" I asked. Alistair snorted for a second. The werewolves continued to glare and growl. "I'll take that as a no."

"We're just going to stand around here while Eren go and gets Zathrian? I wonder how long that will take."

"Probably not long. If Zathrian was smart about this, he would have tailed us to make sure we were doing what we said we were going to do. If I'm right, then they should be here in a matter of minutes."

"If you're right this time, you owe me cheese."

"How do I lose if I'm right? That doesn't make sense."

"You have been right a lot this time." Jowan said.

"It was her own imagination mis amigos."

"I was just naming things off the top of my head."

"But this time you explained down to the detail."

"Ok, I'll tell you the truth…I can see the future."

"Why did I stay here when I could have gone with Eren and had meaningful conversations?"

"Meaningful conversations in where you scream your head off?" Leliana said.

"Oh that was a good one."

"I hate you all." I heard the door open and in came Zathrian along with Eren, Oghren, Derek, Sten, Alfred, and Wynne.

"Wynne! Wynne? When did you-?"

"All we did was follow the way back and we found Zathrian in the ruins. Eren then came out of the passageway and Zathrian finally told us everything." Derek explained. The werewolves growled as Zathrian walked inside the chamber. Their teeth were bares and their claw hands twitched.

"Spirit, you have called for me?"

"Hrrr! She is the Lady of the Forest and you will address her this way!" Swiftrunner ran up to him before going back to the Lady's side.

"You have taken a name spirit? And have named your pets, these beasts who have chosen to follow you."

"They were the ones who gave me my name and the names they have are ones they have decided for themselves. The follow me because I sooth their rage and let them find who they really are."

"Just because you have soothed their rage does nothing from changing them from the beasts they were! Their form only proves how twisted they really are, worthless dogs and mindless beasts."

"He has not come to help us Lady! I have warned you of this coming to pass."

"No I have come here to converse though I see little point in it. We all know where this will lead, your nature calls for it as does mine."

"No it does not need to end that way. There is room in your heart for compassion. Surely retribution is spent."

"My retribution is eternal, as is my pain. This is justice for what your kind did to me."

"Is that the true reason why you will not end this curse? Did you not tell the mortal how it was created in the first place?"

"He summoned a spirit and put in a wolf." Talen said.

"But summoning a spirit as great as you means that used other means of power." Wynne said.

"He used his own blood." Jowan ended.

"It is as you say mortals. The power for the spell could not be accomplished without his own blood. As the curse is bound to me, the curse is bound to you as well Zathrian. Your people think that you have rediscovered the immortality of your people, but in truth it is the curse that is keeping you alive."

"No you are wrong!"

"You'll really go through great lengths to see your revenge huh?" Talen said.

"I did it for what you did to my son and daughter! They deserved justice and I would do anything to see that through!"

"The curse will not end with Zathrian's death but I believe it plays a part of it ending."

"Then we kill him now!" Swiftrunner said.

"There was no point to conversing since your true nature lies right before my eyes, you are all still beasts. It does not matter if you kill me. I know how the ritual ends but I will never do it!"

"Then we shall kill them all!"

"And now you see their true nature. Do what I asked you to do and get me Witherfang's heart. If you cannot go through with it, then get out of my way."

"We won't help you with this Zathrian. You are on your own."

"We stand for what's right, no matter what." Alistair said.

"Their crimes were grave but that does not mean that I can let innocents suffer."

"You really believe that this ritual will kill the curse? I say we take the heart and be on our way." Morrigan said.

"No. We are standing for what is right Morrigan."

"Then you shall suffer their fate and die with them!" Zathrian bathed the wolves in golden light, trapping them in a magical field. He then pulled magic and put them in the sylvans. There were three of them. Talen immediately set them on fire but Zathrian cooled them down with his spells. Alistair ran but Zathrian commanded the roots and pinned Alistair to the wall. DOS and Eren were the closet but the sylvan kicked all four of them out of the way.

A sylvan came toward us and trapped Jowan, Wynne, and Morrigan with its roots. DOS were fighting the other two. Alfred managed to catch Zathrian's arm, but he threw Alfred with telekinetic magic into the wall. I went over to the sylvan that caught the mages and hacked off its branches. Zevran went and ran toward the other ones. Talen tried to set off cone of fires but had to tone down the range because of the closed in quarters. One sylvan was successfully burnt to a crisp. The other that I was fighting let go of Jowan, Morrigan, and Wynne. Wynne pummeled it with some earth which caused it to fall. Jowan quickly went up and bashed in the face with his mace. Zathrian kept everyone at bay with a magical shield. One sylvan to go. Sten cut off a limb and Derek smashed it when it went down. I went over to where Alistair was held on by roots.

I cut off the roots and Alistair got out with a growl. I saw a enormous root heading our way. It crashed into me but Alistair evaded it. I was sent skidding on the floor. Zathrian summoning earth and tree roots to keep away everyone. Once Alistair came, however, he put his Templar abilities to the test and stopped the magic from Zathrian flowing. Eren came and tackled him to the wall. Zathrian coughed and tried to regain his breath until Talen came over and punched him square in the face.

"No…no more…I…I cannot defeat you all…" Zathrian said, blood dribbling down his throat. The golden barriers that held the wolves and the Lady disappeared. Zathrian limped over to them, holding his chest.

"We must kill him now!"

"No Lady do something!" Leliana shouted. Swiftrunner raised his claws but the Lady stepped in and held her hands out toward him.

"No, Swiftrunner! How can we expect compassion and mercy shown to us if we don't have room for it in our hearts as well?"

"You shame me spirit. I am too old to know mercy. All I see are the faces of my children, my people…I cannot do it."

"This has gone far enough Zathrian and you know it." Talen said.

"Perhaps…you are right. I have…live too long, and hated for all that time…it has consumed my soul. What of you spirit? Do you not fear the end that will come when the curse is no more?"

"You are my Maker Zathrian. You have me form when I had none, a mind to think when there were no thoughts. With the life you granted me I have known pain and love, hope and fear, joy and sorrow. Yet all I want is an end. I beg you my Maker, put an end to me. We beg you, show mercy." All the werewolves from the ruin came into the chambers and gathered around Zathrian and the Lady.

"I think you are right spirit."

"Then you will end the curse?"

"Yes, it is time." The rest of us stood near the exit. Zathrian came up and his form glew. He focused on his staff and stomped the floor with it. A shockwave of magic came through, Zathrian's body fell to the ground. The Lady looked around in confusion until the light shown from her as well. The chamber filled with this light until what stood before us were not werewolves but people. I felt the tears fall from my eyes and I felt someone grab my hand. Zevran was there smiling softly at me. The people rejoiced and hugged each other in relief. They looked at each other, beasts no more.

"The curse…it's gone and…we're human. I can scarcely believe it!"

"You should all get going while you have the chance." Eren said.

"Thank you friend for your kindness. It's time to leave the forest and see what interesting things await us. Thank you again. We'll never forget you." They ran up the long way up the stairs.

"We do good work." Alistair said.

"That was beautiful." Leliana said. I wiped away the tears and squeeze Zevran's hand.

"Well, we came, we talked to the werewolves, can we get out of this dump now?" Oghren asked.

"Let's go back to the Dalish camp." Eren said.

* * *

**Don't you love happy endings? :3 Also I enjoyed writing the party banter, very much so.**

**Shout out to Fen'lin and deathcrisis24 for following/favoriting this story!**

**Buggy300: **_Nah, she just threw the cheese in to shake things up a bit. No 100 year old cheese for Alistair lol. Also on the Kirkwall thing, to not spoil anything and in complete simple terms, it gets complicated, VERY complicated. Anything more would reveal too much. I hated the Revenants as well but my brother always applauded me when I managed to defeat them in nightmare mode. It's possible, just super hard to do.  
_**Dforce76: **_Yes I love that you can make it better and Nia will make sure she plays a part in it as well. Thedas is very screwed up but Nia still loves the place.  
_**Shattered Soul 2021: **_I'll keep that in mind, my main is almost level 20. Jowan is a special mage, can't do nothing but good with a weapon. I did like Jowan very much in my playthrough and was sad that I wasn't able to keep him in the team, that's why i added him :3  
_**EG: **_The earring huh? Well maybe, I cannot confirm or deny that it will happen..._

**Please Review :3**


	50. Traveling part 5

9:31 Wintermarch 27th Continued

I hummed on the way back. The fog that was all around the eastern part of the forest has faded and the sun was shining brightly. Whatever we did, it made things better overall. I was also overjoyed that we were able to get the wolves to compromise. Out of all the things we've done so far, this has got to be one of the prouder moments of my adventure.

"You seem to be in a brighter mood." Leliana said.

"We saved the Dalish and rescued people from a curse that had them trapped in those werewolf bodies for who knows how long! Of course I'm happy."

"I'm happy to get out of this sodding forest! It's too green!" Oghren said.

"Yes we know that Oghren." Talen said. We got back to the greener part of the forest and I found the ironbark. It was a beautiful type of wood. I only got the ones that already fell off the fallen tree naturally. I got a pretty good armful.

"And why are you taking that mi niña?"

"It's for Varathorn. He couldn't go in the forest so he asked me to pick some up. He told me he can make armor out of it so I was wondering if could ask him for a set."

"Allow me mi niña."

"No it's ok Zevran, it's not that heavy."

"We should keep a tally of how many armors you go through. Once you hit 10 or 20, I'll give you a reward." Derek guffawed.

"It's really amazing how you get into so much trouble." Alistair said.

"Well it's not like I have a sign on my forehead or back that says 'Please destroy my armor.' It just happens."

"Maybe we need to start training you on heavy armor then. If your medium armor keeps on getting destroyed, heavy armor should be best." Eren said.

"Hell no! Do you know how long it took me to finally run in medium armor!? Months! No heavy armor. I'll pay through my own pocket for the medium thank you very much."

"You're going to get yourself killed, again."

"You can't let that go can you Eren?"

"I see the start of the camp. Mind yourselves while we talk to Lanaya." Eren said. I stuck my tongue out at him and Leliana laughed.

"We should rest before continuing onto Redcliffe." Sten said.

"I'm with him." Jowan said.

"Oh no you're not. You're coming with me." I said.

"What?"

"Come on, Varathorn should have some supplies that we can use. It's about time we get you some gear to wear, especially now that you're an Arcane Warrior."

"But, Talen!"

"You heard her."

"Come on you sissy." Jowan groaned and followed me while the rest when to the camp. I recognized Varathorn in the camp and dropped the ironbark on his station. "Hey, I got you your Ironbark just like you requested."

"This is…more than I thought you would get. Thank you. You have brought me enough that I can make you something. What would you like? A bow or a breastplate?"

"Well…" I pointed to my chainmail that I was wearing which was still in tatters. Varathorn chuckled.

"Of course. Come over here and lay your armor elsewhere so I could take your measurements. Apprentice, you will watch and learn how I shape the wood. No more burning."

"Yes Master Varathorn."

"Also I was wondering if you have any spare equipment. My companion here needs it. I have gold to barter with." I said, while Varathorn was taking my measurements.

"Do not worry yourself on bartering. What you have brought me in ironbark is more than what I can ask of you. There, your armor will be ready soon. The spare equipment that we do have is right in this chest. Please take only what you need."

"Ma serannas, thank you." Varathorn chuckled.

"You learn quickly. Less emphasis on the e though. Ma nuvenin."

"Alright, let's see what we have here…oooh! Dalish armor. This should be good unless you want to look for something heavier."

"Hmm, this feels well."

"Here's a Dalish shield as well. Better for blocking. You suck at spell casting but you are getting the hang of the mace at least."

"Um thank you?"

"Don't mention it. Let's go to camp." Jowan and I said goodbye to Varathorn and we went to the camp. Everyone was quickly chattering and I sat down. Jowan needed help putting on his armor, since this would be the first time he would have done it. Zevran took the job.

"I say, you have quite the…equipment."

"Don't stare at it!"

"Can you please keep it down? Not everyone would like privy to your moments." Morrigan said.

"So why do you scream whenever you and Eren are together?" I said.

"Because he is an excellent lover." I laughed. "Why are you laughing? Do not tell me that you have-"

"I'm stopping you there Morrigan because I never touched him with those types of intentions. Three years Morrigan, I've waited three years. I think I can wait three years more until it starts to bite me."

"So you have never once laid your head down with someone?"

"She has already told me no." Leliana said.

"That's because it's not at the forefront of my mind. I got other things to worry about than that."

"Such a shame because I would love to know that side of you mi niña." Zevran said coming up behind me.

"Zevran, how many times do I have to say no?"

"He doesn't listen." Jowan said, coming up, red faced with his armor on. Oghren laughed.

"Now that's what I'm talking about! About time you got the sissy in some armor. Though this armor is still flimsy."

"The Dalish make good armor, besides, we needed to get him something so I got him something. It's something." Sten snorted.

"We will need to train him then."

"I'll leave that up to you big guy. You are probably the most experienced one out of all us."

"That is the correct assumption."

"Oh good, you are all here." Alistair said coming with the others in tow.

"We talked to the Keeper's first, who is now Keeper. She agreed with the papers that the Dalish signed on our treaties. We got the Dalish with us now."

"That means we have all available allies besides the ones we can get in Denerim." Eren said.

"So it is time to set off back to Redcliffe, yes?" Leliana said.

"That's the plan. I still can't believe it. We really have an army now." Alistair said.

"Let's hope it's not an early spring then, because if it is..." Talen said, leaving that in the air.

"It's best if we be on our way." Eren said. "Pack up everything."

"Just on moment Eren. Varathorn is making my armor right now."

"You convinced him to make you armor?"

"I'm a persuasive person."

"At least he's making you something. Fine, until she gets her armor, we might as well stay." Alfred barked in agreement. Well that was one doozy of an entry. As I was writing, Varathorn gave me my armor. It gleamed and acted like iron. It was so cool! It fit perfectly as well. We bid goodbye to the Dalish and set off with Lily to go to Redcliffe. Right now, Talen and Leliana are in the wagon with Sten next to me. My hand hurts.

9:31 Wintermarch 28th

We've been traveling all day and reached the beginning of Lake Calenhad. Derek made sure to run us all. No literally he made us run. The only one that he didn't do this for was Wynne and anyone who went in the wagon. The rest of us was pushed on or else. He found a big stick to make it so.

"If…Jowan…is the…only one…who needs training…why am I doing this!?" I panted. The ones that were in the wagon was Talen, Wynne, Zevran, and Leliana. They had already done their morning run. Sten was a monster, running all the way along with us. Oghren just wouldn't stop either. He couldn't handle Derek being better at him in stamina.

"Stop…talking…girly!" Oghren shouted.

"I'm…dying…can't…OW!" Derek slapped Jowan's thigh again.

"Keep going! You're a man aren't you?" Derek said.

"Derek…I'm going…to kill you…" Alistair said.

"Put some backbone into it Templar! You wanna get to Redcliffe? Then we're going to Redcliffe!"

"It is all in how you breathe." Sten said, keeping a relatively good pace. Alfred was panting heavily next to me but he was all happy.

"Sten…you…you're a…monster." I said. I heard a raven cry up ahead. It dipped low before squawking at my face. "Oh…screw you…Morrigan!" Morrigan squawked again. I knew she was laughing at me.

"Derek I think that's enough. If we get caught by bandits or darkspawn, they'll be too tired to fight." Eren said, on top of Lily.

"As the boss says, come on take a breather!" I coughed while Jowan went and threw up in some bushes. "I said take a breather not stop walking!"

"Jesus…Christ…oh God…I'm going…to be…sore…"

"Maker's…breath…" Alistair said next to me. My ribs were hurting for the next few hours. The wagon was taken by the others. Alistair, Jowan, Sten, and I were in there. After the workout I felt really tired but I didn't want to go and nap. Unfortunately my body didn't agree and I wound up falling asleep, my head on Alistair's shoulder.

We eventually found a place to camp for the night. I was near Lake Calenhad, my breath coming out in puffs. It was so odd to walk out of a forest that was warm to the cold, frigid temperatures of the rest of the world. I saw a small explosion behind me and Jowan was being taught by Talen again.

"Oh boy what happened now?" I said, sitting next to Leliana. She gave me a bowl of my soup with some bread the Dalish gave us for our journey.

"Jowan failed again."

"I swear Jowan on Andraste's Ashes that if you can't get a simple spell like this right the next time, I will personally throw you into Lake Calenhad and watch you drown!" Talen shouted, his fingers on his temples.

"Calm yourself Talen. You must be patient with him. Being on the run has obviously made him forget beginner's lessons." Wynne said.

"Oh gee thanks. It's good to see no one here believes in me." Jowan said flatly.

"Tis because you are not being properly trained."

"This is how we trained our mages Morrigan."

"Then tis an ineffective method. Come Jowan, you will learn the way my mother taught me."

"And your mother is…?"

"Flemeth."

"Wait, THE Flemeth? The Witch of the Wilds?"

"Yes! Now stand there."

"Ok? Now what?"

"Do not perish." Morrigan said with a smirk, her hands crackling with magic. Jowan screamed as he evaded a cold spell. Oghren and Derek were both getting drunk and laughing like it was the funniest shit they ever saw.

"I almost feel sorry for Jowan…almost." Alistair said.

"He is trying his best. Not only that, he showed us the dragon's hoard. That was a lot of gold, yes?" Leliana said. She had already counted her share. It was about 52 sovs with various jewels.

"I have to admit that his addition has been fortuitous, no?"

"Zevran, you just want to get into his pants."

"I saw it mi niña."

"Oh don't even start again!" Alistair said, covering his ears. "La, la, la, I'm not listening!"

"Grower or a shower?"

"Pardon?"

"A grower is one that looks small but grows really big, a shower looks big but doesn't grow very much."

"Either way he does have potential."

"Zevran you are bad." Leliana said.

"It is who I am."

"Sten, what about you? Grower or a shower?"

"Do you require an answer to this question?"

"La, la, la!"

"We might as well. Do we have anything of more importance?"

"Nope, not until Redcliffe. Come on Sten, just to satisfy my curiosity." I said. Sten snorted and I immediately knew the answer.

"Ah ha! You're a grower!"

"Oh you're going to make my ears bleed!" Alistair said. We all laughed and Jowan jumped over my legs avoiding another spell.

"You will not become proficient until you fight back!"

"I'd rather be taught by Wynne and Talen!"

"You do not have a choice!" The scene made me laugh harder. Then I my mind wandered to the elves and what happened to them. The cycle of hatred was going on for hundreds of years all at the fault for one man.

"What is it mi niña? It is seems you are contemplating something."

"It was the elves. I thought about how long that cycle of hatred went on. Hundreds of years that people have been turning into werewolves…all because of one man. How can you hate for so long?"

"His son and daughter. He assumed that he was granting them justice by using the curse to twist every human who walked their path. It is not something even I could fathom." Leliana said.

"What would you have done?" Alistair asked. I sighed. My son tortured and killed and my daughter raped and left for dead?

"I'd kill them with my bare hands. I would make them suffer and I wouldn't even give them death if they asked for it. It would be slow, and when they would look at me in mercy, begging for the sweet death, I would whisper back 'No.' If they were smart, they would kill themselves before I found them. God may have mercy on their souls, but that's what I would do at least. No one messes with my babies and gets away with it."

"Wow, you scared me there for a second."

"Zathrian got over his hate though. He wasn't afraid to die. We shouldn't fear death. It comes for us all. There is only one fairness in life and that is that all of us will die in the end." I said.

"When…when Cecile died, a wise elven woman comforted me in my time. She told me the same thing you have said, to not fear death or hate it. Death is just the beginning. We will all one day shed our physical bodies to free the spirits that lie within us."

"That…is oddly comforting." Alistair said.

"Yes, a very beautiful sentiment. It brings peace and hope for the grieving." Leliana said, looking at me in the eye. Eren was nearby, listening in, tending to his armor. We looked at each other for a second. Our grief was the same. It got better for both of us but the memories were still there, burning. Leliana stood up and went in front of the fire. As Leliana sang, I harmonized. A long time ago I memorized this song, but it eluded me then. Right now, this was the only thing I could have done with her.

Hahren na melana sahlin  
Emma ir abelas  
Souver'inan isala hamin  
Vhenan him dor'felas  
In uthenera na revas

I saw Jowan, Wynne, Morrigan, and Talen stop. Oghren stopped drinking for a second. Derek looked up from his carving. Sten's face looked less tense. It was amazing what a simple song could do. I got up, singing loudly along with Leliana and grabbing her hand. She smiled at me as we both sang along.

Vir sulahn'nehn  
Vir dirthera  
Vir samahl la numin  
Vir lath sa'vunin

"Thank you Leliana." Eren said. Leliana nodded and we touched foreheads.

"You surprised me. Have you heard of this song?"

"A long time ago. I forgot the words though."

"Then I shall teach you."

"Maybe another time. It's getting late and we should get some rest before going to Redcliffe." Leliana nodded. I noticed that Zevran's smile wasn't there like it usually was. I heard Jowan shout again as Morrigan continued her barrage of spells when I went into my tent. I got my journal and was about to write when I heard someone shuffle in. It was Zevran.

"Zevran, how many times-"

"I have not come here for that. I have come here…because I have something I must tell you." I saw the seriousness of his face and I nodded. He sat down near me, quiet, his fingers twiddling in nervousness. He cleared his throat and sighed. "I have not expected to have become so close to someone is such short time though considering our circumstances, we have been through quite many things. We survived many battles and have come to each other in our time of grief. I understand that the song Leliana sang meant something to you and to Eren as well but it also pertained to me. When we were in the Gauntlet, awaiting our trials the Guardian told me something, something that no one else knew." There were a few times when Zevran would tell me of his adventures but, of course, there was always one he kept to himself.

"He said if you regretted someone's death."

"Yes. It was the main reason I came to Ferelden. No more secrets between you and I Nia. This is the mission I undertook prior to coming to Ferelden, back in Antiva. My last mission did not end well." Zevran hesitated.

"It's ok Zevran, I'm listening."

"Thank you. Back during the mission, I was cocky and arrogant. I was the best Crow in Antiva, or so I believed. I bragged about my successes often both as an assassin and as a lover."

"You were more cocky and arrogant?" Zevran gave out a nervous chuckle.

"It is true, many have called me insufferable…right before I ended up in their bed. I am digressing. One of the Crow masters were weary of my boasting and accepted my bid for a difficult mark. It was a wealthy merchant. He had many guards and would no doubt stop at any attempt on his life. There was a crow named Taliesen who agreed to be a part of my team. And another, an elven lass named Rinna. She was…a wonder. Strong, smooth, wicked, she had eyes that gleamed like justice. She was everything I thought I desired."

"You fell in love with her."

"…It is as you say. Rinna was special. I had closed off my heart but something stirred inside me, something I could not explain and it frightened me. Taliesen revealed to me that she had taken a bribe from the merchant and told him of our plan. I had agreed that she needed to pay the price for what she did. I allowed Taliesen to kill her. Rinna was on her knees, begging me, telling me of her innocence, tears in her eyes. She told me she loved me and that she did not betray us. I laughed in her face and told her that, even if that were true, that I didn't care."

"You knew that wasn't true."

"I convinced myself that it was. Taliesen cut her throat and she laid their bleeding, her eyes staring up at me. I spat on her for betraying the Crows. Taliesen found the merchant and we assassinated him. There we found the true source of his information. Rinna never betrayed us." I could tell that this was very hard on him. I sat closer to him and held his hand and Zevran put his head on top of mine. His thumb ran over my knuckles.

"I'm sorry."

"I…wanted to admit our mistake, to tell the Crows of what happened. Taliesen convinced me otherwise. Told me that it would be a foolish waste. We reported that she had died in the attempt. They knew however. They all knew. The Crow master that disliked me, told me so. He said he couldn't wait until my turn would come…I wanted to leave the Crows, what better way than to die by the fabled Grey Wardens?"

"Do you still feel that way?"

"No. I have found another calling, a new beginning. I think I have found it here in our group. I owe you a great deal."

"What?" I said, looking at him. "Zevran, you don't owe me anything."

"Don't I? Have you forgotten that you voted for me to stay?"

"Yes and then I told you I would kill you if you had done anything."

"Which I haven't."

"True."

"Nia…I am glad that you decided on me to stay. I have found my purpose and what may follow, I am not sure but for now I will travel with all of you until the last battle is won."

"Thank you Zevran, for telling me all of this."

"Of course mi amor." My eyebrow cocked in confusion and I think Zevran did as well.

"…What did you-"

"It is getting late is it not? We might as well go and rest. Buenas Noches, mi niña."

"Zevran-" He kissed my hand and kissed the top of my head and left without another word. I face palmed and laughed. Today was an eventful day. The candle is dying now. Better end it here.

9:31 Wintermarch 29th

We reached Redcliffe, it was really late (or really early) but we reached it. Jowan is down in the village right now since he was barred from the castle. I'm in the room that I had earlier during our visit. Eamon already talked to the 4 GWs about going to Denerim to call a Landsmeet. The trip coming here wasn't as bad as yesterday. Derek made us jog this time instead of running. Jowan threw up twice and Talen was throwing spells at his feet to keep him going.

"Talen you're enjoying this too much." I said, jogging next to Leliana.

"It's his fault for making me nearly go into Aeonar, I'm just repaying the favor. Keep going!" Talen said, conjuring up a small fire and tossing it at Jowan's feet. Jowan shouted and Talen chuckled darkly.

"Remind me why you chose him over Alistair?" Leliana giggled.

"He is fun to be around no?"

"Really? That was it?"

"Oh there are many reasons why I was attracted to Talen but that was one of his defining features."

"Even though he mocked you when you first met?"

"Hm I have forgiven him for that." Leliana giggled.

"…You guys did it again last night didn't you?"

"Nia, say another word and I'll shoot you with fire too!" Talen shouted red faced. Leliana giggled and I shook my head. Wynne was reading ahead of us in the wagon again. Sten had joined her. I could tell he was worn out from the running yesterday.

"Why are you making us jog all the way to Redcliffe Derek?" I asked.

"The sooner we get there, the sooner we can get to Denerim. Not only that, my gut is telling me this winter won't last for very long. Once the snow melts, darkspawn is going to take Ferelden. I won't let that happen."

"Wow, such a patriot." Talen said before Derek hit his thigh with the stick. "OW! Andraste's Flaming Sword! Derek, I'll burn off the rest of your beard!" Poor Derek had to do the ultimate sacrifice and shave his beard to be more even after the werewolf shaved most of it with its claws.

"You do it and poor Leliana here will be left single."

"Please Talen, calm down. It seems that Jowan has slowed down."

"What!? No I haven't-OW!"

"Ha ha! Burn!"

"I have yet to see why you guys are even together."

It got late but Derek was pushing to get to Redcliffe. That gut feeling was bothering him so we went along with it. We came down from the trail and found ourselves back in the village.

"Hail Grey Wardens! Have you come back from the Dalish so soon?" Tomas said, taking Lily.

"It wasn't too hard to locate them. Is Arl Eamon awake?" Eren said.

"I do not know. You will have to go into the castle. Until then, I will lead Lily to the stables as well as your wagon. Your packs will be taken to the Castle, momentarily.

"Thank you Tomas. Jowan, unfortunately you're going to have to stay here." Eren said.

"Yes I understand."

"I shall keep you company Jowan, so you do not feel lonely." Zevran said.

"Uh…"

"Let's just go. Jowan, be careful with Zevran." Talen said. I shook my head. The rest of us went toward the castle. The guards were up and they called down Arl Eamon to tell him of our success. Everyone, besides me, went to their rooms. I stayed down in the hall to wait for Eamon. I yawned for the tenth time. I wanted to sleep but I also wanted to see history in the making. I was only going to live this once and I wasn't going to pass an opportunity.

"Are you sure you don't want to go get some sleep?" Eren asked.

"No, I'm fine."

"Don't fall asleep standing up." Derek laughed.

"I'm not going to. I'm going to stay here and witness this."

"Why exactly, if you don't mind me asking?" Alistair said.

"Because you guys are the wardens. Someone has to make sure you're doing your job right." Derek guffawed. "No but in all seriousness, I want to be here because I know, right here, right now, you four are about to chance Ferelden for the better. I want to remember everything and make sure everyone knows what you all did."

"Thank you Nia." Eren said.

"You're welcome."

"Grey Wardens, I trust you have awoken me in this dreadful hour with some good news?" Arl Eamon said, striding in the hall.

"Arl Eamon, we have gathered all of our allies. The Dalish has agreed to honor their agreement with the Grey Wardens."

"I see. Then we must be swift and call a Landsmeet. I do not want to give Loghain time to think but I will not go to Denerim unless you all are with me."

"We are with you Eamon. Call the Landsmeet."

"Good. I will send word and we shall ride in the morning. May the Maker watch over us." Eamon said. He excused himself and I yawned again.

"Can't believe that we're already here." Derek mumbled.

"We did it." Talen said.

"Not yet. We might have gotten our allies but the real test is about to begin. Loghain has the country by the scruff. The civil war is still raging. Hopefully once we get to Denerim we can convince the nobles to our side." Eren said.

"No pressure." Alistair chuckled.

"Well, we'd better get some rest then. We can't have Loghain catch us with our pants down." I yawned.

"True." Eren said. The rest went off into their rooms and I was about to go before Eren grabbed my arm. "Nia. I haven't thanked you for getting me this far."

"Oh come on Eren, I didn't do anything."

"No you did. You saved my life. Thank you for being here. I know that you'll always be there for me."

"It's my job to protect you and I'll make sure of it no matter what. Now let's go to sleep." Eren nodded.

It's been a long day. Time for some sleep.

* * *

**As you know we have gotten to the 50th chapter. My last 2 week break is after this update so I can edit/fill in a few things I missed in the earlier chapters. Nothing big. And, if you're wondering, the reason why Zevran told her that before the whole companion quest, is because he trusts her that much.**

**Shout out to almakarma18 for favoriting/following this story!**

**Buggy300: **_I didn't like DA2 until I played through inquisition, then it made me appreciate the games all the more because that's where everything really started. Yes First Enchanter Orsino, i have plans for him...I know right? I can see people believing Nia when she says that she's another world, The fact that she can see the future? Not so much_ lol  
**EG: **_I still love your reviews though! :D  
_**Shattered Soul 2021: **_I love Leliana's song as well, I have it in my mp3 player :3 also I liked that scene as well. There's a puddle, we're going swimming! The compromise was the best thing in the game because it really was a win-win if you think about it._

**Please review :3**


	51. The City of Denerim

9:31 Wintermarch 30th

We're halfway to Denerim or at least all the major players are. Everyone was given a mount to ride on, good horses that can go long distances without tiring. They were supplied by the horse master Dennet. Yes, that horse master. I was surprised as well when I met him.

We nearly reached the Brecilian Forest on just one day's travel. The soldiers will meet us at the estate that Eamon has at Denerim.

Eamon called on the soldiers early morning to make sure they were all ready to head out to Denerim. The rest of us were getting ready as well. I was being shown by Eren how to properly mount a horse. Out of all the years that I've been here, I have never rode on horseback.

"You take your leg and place it here and grab onto the saddle. Take a good jump, your leg should go over on the other side. Don't worry about riding her, she'll be attached to my own horse. These horses are made for long distance riding." Eren said.

"I'm already getting nervous about all of this. I mean, we did it, we actually did it! We got our allies! Now if only the rest of the country would follow…"

"That's why we're going to Denerim. Once we have everyone following behind us, we'll be ready for the Darkspawn."

"And then our marvelous journey will be done." Morrigan said, coming up to Eren.

"Oh I don't think I'll be done with you yet Morrigan."

"Ahem, I'm still here you know?"

"Then look away."

"Sure, I'll go gagged out my breakfast while I'm at it too." Morrigan laughed as Eren grabbed her by the waist. I shook my head and went to the others. Jowan, Talen, Wynne, Derek, and Oghren are going to be making the trip by the wagon at the end of everyone. Eamon doesn't even want to look at Jowan.

"Yo guys, ready to set off?" I asked.

"Ready as we'll ever be missy." Derek said, making sure Lily was ready. I saw Wynne's look of disapproval at Eren and Morrigan's obvious display of PDA.

"I'm guessing you don't like what you're seeing?"

"Morrigan is dangerous, young, and cunning. Eren has been swayed by her beauty. Pity he did not choose you over her."

"Wynne I'm-"

"I understand but I'd rather deal with you two than with them too. I understand that Morrigan has some underlying intent to all of this, I am sure of it."

"I think we all know that Wynne. But then what about Leliana and Talen? You haven't said anything about them."

"It is because I see them better themselves. Leliana has accepted parts of herself she didn't want to and she keeps Talen calm through his rage. She's a side of maturity that Talen desperately needs. I'll admit that Talen was a very difficult apprentice in the Circle."

"Really? No wait, I can believe that considering how he is now." Wynne chuckled.

"When he first came in the Circle, he was a small child, the youngest we've ever found. He was five years old. Templars said that they found him wandering the forest, setting fires as he would go and laughing at them. He was always an unruly child but he enjoyed attention. When he found that he got attention by doing his studies, he studied even more. He was a gifted apprentice when it came to the Primal tree, as we all see now. But I could always tell that Talen had a compassionate side that he didn't know about. Maybe that is why he grew attached to Jowan and wanted to learn beside him. He was surprised to learn that Creation came easily to him."

"Fire doesn't always destroy."

"No, fire can also make and preserve life. Where would we be if not the fire that is stoke during the long and wintery nights? I knew that Talen would make something greater of himself. Becoming a Grey Warden was the best thing for him I believe and having Leliana around makes him greater as well."

"So that's why you don't say anything to him?"

"Oh I have said something. I told him what if he had to choose between the sacrifice and her. He told me that he would find a middle ground, that there is always a third option. Talen always grabs that as his rule. He is a blood mage that has found a use for it for mastery of healing. He drank the potion in Soldier's Peak, not to make him stronger, but to protect others. Talen might be brash but he is an honest person."

"Yeah, who would have thought huh? Anyway, make sure that you guys stay safe ok?"

"And you as well."

"Wynne did you get everything?" Talen asked, putting his pack in the wagon.

"Yes I have."

"Wynne you almost forgot this!" Leliana said, carrying a bag that I recognized that Wynne used it for her potions.

"Oh my bag of components! Thank you my dear."

"I saw that you left it near the main hall door."

"Oh thank you for picking up after this old lady."

"Come on we're burning daylight!" Oghren shouted.

"I'd better get back to Eren." I said.

"Of course. We shall be right behind you Nia." I went over to the horse that was chosen for me and I saw Zevran on his own coming up behind me.

"Ah you are ready mi niña?"

"Ready as I'll ever be." I got up on the saddle before Eren came and got on his own horse. There was a raven on his shoulder. Morrigan squawked at me.

"Yeah, I know. I could only be envious at you since you can fly." Morrigan let out a series of squawks that I knew were laughter.

"You can understand her while she is in that form?" Zevran asked.

"More or less." Eren clacked his tongue and we rode out of the castle. Eamon was already waiting for us at the main gates.

"We shall continue to Denerim, my soldiers on our heel. I have already sent world for my estate to be cleaned for our arrival."

"Oh? An estate? Much more better than the flea bitten tents that we have."

"Didn't stop you and Tomas from going crazy in them."

"Nor did it stop me and Jowan from it as well last night."

"Zevran you didn't!?" Zevran laughed and I saw Sten riding up next to us.

"To Denerim then." Eamon said. It was a jarring and painful experience to ride a horse for that amount of time. I never rode a horse that long before. We got off once it started to get dark. Everything was killing me.

"Ow! How can you ride these things?" I groaned in pain, sitting down near my tent.

"I find it hard to believe you've never rode a horse in all your life." Alistair said, sitting down next to me.

"I didn't ride horses in my world. We had something different."

"Really? What was that mi niña?"

"They were called cars. They were big metal objects ran with gas that had the power of over 50 horses."

"Now that I find hard to believe." Eren said.

"So…we're nearing Denerim huh?" I said.

"We will be there shortly." Sten said.

"It was easier fighting things and abominations, now we've got to fight people." I mumbled.

"It's a civil war Nia. We will try not to but you know who are enemies are."

"Loghain."

"And Howe." Alistair's and Eren's faces both grow dark.

"Hey I know you two want to kill them but our priorities are getting everyone to side together." I said.

"It is true though should you need them to have an…accident, I will place myself under your orders." Zevran said.

"Well for once we can use your talents." Alistair said. Zevran laughed.

"Let's get some rest. Eamon would have us wake up early to make the rest of the way there." Eren said.

I'm getting anxious the closer we get to Denerim. It has stopped snowing for a while. The ground was still frozen but the snow was starting to recede. Derek was right. This was going to be a short winter and then the cold won't be able to stop the Darkspawn. They'll start to ravage the entire country like a black plague. I hope we'll be able to band together before all of that happens.

9:31 Guardian 1st

The rest of the ride to Denerim was uneventful. We got here nighttime. The estate is huge! The ride was silent as we kept on riding. I couldn't do anything because my butt hurt so much. It hurt even more because I had to keep on riding. Eamon was dead set on getting there as quickly as possible to not give Loghain time to launch something against us. No doubt his recovery has already spread throughout the nobles during our time in the Brecilian Forest.

Morrigan was lucky that she didn't have to suffer like I did. I noticed that her and Eren were getting together more frequently than usual. No doubt she wants him to be in love with her once the ritual happens so that he would choose it. I would as well considering we'll have a chance for everyone to survive. If not, someone will have to die. Talen, Derek, Alistair, or Eren. Riordan won't be able to since he'll die before the time comes. I couldn't imagine any of them dying but I know they would to save the country.

At this time I can't predict nothing. I know where everything will go if someone dies and if someone doesn't die. I have too much variables now but there is one advantage I do have; I know what to say to the nobles in order to have the most approval amongst them all. It'll be good to also have Anora's support but that can only happen if we make sure she'll have the throne. Either we'll lie to her or Alistair or Eren marries her.

There are so many things that can go wrong now. I'll have to make sure that everything goes smoothly. I might have been able to do much of anything up to this point, but I will make sure that this time I'll do my best to save everyone I can. I won't lie down while all of this is going on. I know I'll be going home eventually but, until then, I'll do all in my power to secure this nation. Either way it's late, I got my own bed, time to sleep.

9:31 Guardian 2nd

Can I say that I hate Loghain and Howe? We have met. Everyone got up early in the morning and were at their respective places. I decided to join the four GWs out in the main hall with Eamon. The soldiers have all started to march into the estate. I have to say they are fast marchers or our group apparently liked to take our time when traveling.

"It is good that you are all here. Alistair, Eren, Talen, and Derek. It is best that we have Denerim at our side. This city is the soul and heart of Ferelden. The birthplace of Andraste and the city that the great King Maric fought for from the Orlesians. It is known for its stubbornness which is good when dealing with some of the people who live here. If we defeat Loghain here, the rest of the country will soon follow. Since I have called the Landsmeet, I have laid the first blow against Loghain. The advantage is our for now and he will have no choice but to show himself and oppose us. He will strike at us that is for certain. The only question remains is how long will he take to do so. Be ready Grey Wardens."

"My lord, Arl Redon How and Lord Loghan Mac Tir are at the gates." A servant came to warn us.

"Then let him in." The servant went and left. "It seems that we did not have to wait long for him to make his appearance."

"Loghain is probably going to check himself to see if you live or not." Derek said. Alistair had a scowl on his face and was glaring at the main gates.

"Alistair, calm down. You too Eren."

"I am calm." They both said. I gave them a flat look before the door opened. Loghain came in. He was a big man, tall, imposing, especially with all that heavy plate armor on. He had a frown on his face but his stride suggested that he was confident in meeting with us. Next to him was his lieutenant, Ser Cauthrien. She was as tall as Loghain, which was saying something. Then there was Arl Rendon How, the betrayer next to them. When his eyes caught Eren's, they glared.

"Loghain…It is an honor for the Regent to find time to greet me personally for coming into the city." Loghain smirked. This was a man forged by battle, you could see it in his face.

"How could I not greet the man that would call upon ever single lord for a Landsmeet while our very country is being raked by a blight?" My rage was burning and boiling inside me. He wasn't even trying to fight the blight!

"The Blight is the reason I am here Loghain. Ferelden must have a king on the throne to lead it against the darkspawn."

"Ferelden already has a strong leader! Or have you forgotten your Queen Anora? I am leading her armies as we speak against the menace that would tear down our walls."

"If Queen Anora still rules why isn't she here to speak for herself?" Eren said. Loghain's focus on Eamon left and he looked at Eren.

"Pft, and who is this stray that you picked up Eamon? Here I thought the only dogs you took care of were royal bastards."

"Well at least you noticed the royal part." Alistair mumbled.

"My name is Eren Cousland, the one of the last of my family and Grey Warden."

"Eren Cousland?" Loghain gave Howe a sidelong glance. "Warden, pity that your order vanished at Ostagar and then chose to turn again Ferelden." I saw Eren giving him a dark look before I tapped on his hand.

"Enough of these hidden words that we are all not saying, when is the Landsmeet?" Eren said.

"Do not interrupt when your betters are talking, churl." Cauthrien said.

"Depends if those betters are traitors and backstabbers." I said.

"How dare you-!"

"Enough Ser Cauthrien. This is not the time nor the place. I had hope that you would stand down from your actions Eamon. Our king is dead, the country is frightened, and our land under siege. We must unite against the Blight or lest this crisis ruin the very country your sister, Queen Rowan, restored. Would you destroy the work she created? Your own selfish intentions to gain power at the throne will weaken our efforts to combat the blight!"

"If you really want to save this nation, then stand with us." Eren said. Alistair looked at him wide eyed as well as I did.

"Do you really believe me a fool? I will not put my faith in untried foreign hands! Your King Cailan believed in the prowess and stories of the Grey Wardens against the darkspawn and look where that ended. No more tall tales, let us only speak of reality."

"No more of your lies Loghain. The Maker might forgive you but not I, not for what you have done. The people deserve a king of the Theirin bloodline. Alistair will be the one to lead us to victory against the Blight."

"Oh so I have to lead all our allies and the people of Ferelden against the blight? No pressure…" Loghain got up real close to Eamon.

"The emperor of Orlais also underestimated my ability to tear down his armies. I will show you no mercy just as I did him. There is nothing I wouldn't do for my homeland." Loghain said, turning and made his way out the gate.

"Nice to you see again Eren, and your little whore." Rendon Howe whispered before leaving with Loghain. I clenched my fists as they walked out of the main hall. As soon as the door closed, I growled.

"Oh! I am going to punch Howe in the face, just you watch!"

"Nia…"

"That was…unexpected. I didn't expect Loghain to come to us so soon."

"So what do we do now?" Derek asked.

"Calling the Landsmeet was only the first of what we must do. We must rally the nobles against Loghain and that won't be an easy feat to do. We need to scour the city of his misdeeds. Loghain has been here for months and his schemes must begin here. The sooner we find what he has been doing, the better we can use what we find against him."

"Politics…" Talen groaned.

"Get used to them kid." Derek said.

"Go look into the city and see what will turn up. Even better, go and find the nobles that have arrived in the Landsmeet. Test the waters, see how many will support us. Eren, Alistair, when you are both ready with a strategy, come upstairs to my sitting room. We can put together a plan for the Landsmeet. Good hunting Wardens." Eamon said, going up to his room. Eren put his hands to his temples.

"What now Eren?" Eren get out a breath.

"Get everyone together and meet at the dining hall. We will need everyone's cooperation on this." Eren said. We nodded and I went to look for the others. Wynne walked into the main hall when I told her to go to the dining hall.

"We have much work to do." Wynne said.

"Yeah no kidding. Oghren is already in there. Do you know where the others could be?"

"I believe I saw Leliana and Zevran in the library."

"Good, I'll pick them up." I went to the library and I saw both of them going through what Eamon had.

"Find anything interesting?"

"There is one book here that details the relationship of a maid and her lord." Zevran said, winking at me.

"And you Nia? How are you?"

"I'm good. Eren called up a meeting in the dining hall. We should get ourselves there."

"Good, I have been waiting to see what we can do about this situation with Ferelden."

"Oh man Leliana, you have no idea how bad this country has it." All three of us when into the dining hall. Everyone was there minus Eren.

"Where's Eren?" I asked.

"It seems that he got caught up in something with Eamon." Derek said, sitting down. I heard a loud belch come from the tankard. Oghren was swaying slightly.

"Oh was that me?" Morrigan's nose turned up in disgust.

"Ugh, must you do that around me?"

"Hehe, don't knock it until you try it witch." Eren came into the room along Alistair.

"Good you are all here. As you've heard, Loghain came as soon as we got settled. He has already made his position very clear and that position is that he is against us."

"No surprise there." Talen said.

"What do you propose we do mi amigo?"

"I will go and find the nobles that have come and try to persuade them into our side." Eren said. "Morrigan, Sten, and Alfred will be joining me. Talen, take Leliana, Zevran, and Nia into the city to find out about any unusual unrest. Derek, Oghren, Alistair, Jowan, and Wynne do the same. Find anything that relates to Loghain. We'll meet back here once the sun is high in the sky. Be safe everyone. We're on Loghain's territory now. We don't know what he has planned for us."

"I do not see why we do not march right into his castle and kill him there."

"Yes and the fact that he has a whole army to command is lost on you."

"Why must we go about this in a roundabout way?"

"Because that's now this works Morrigan. I don't like it either."

"Well, we're not going to get anything done while standing here and talking about how unfair everything is. Let's get going." I said. Talen, Leliana, Zevran, and I went out the doors and into the city. It was cold out with a few clouds but none that looked like rain or snow.

"Alright Leliana and Zevran, time to use your information abilities and see what's out there." I said. Leliana giggled.

"There is not much to be found in this city mi niña but there is always one place where gossip and rumors abound."

"A place where all sorts of people gather." All three us looked at each other.

"The market place." We all said at the same time.

"It's eerie how all of you got to that conclusion so quickly." Talen said.

"We all have great minds that think alike, don't we mi niña?"

"Yep. So let's go and see what the people are talking about right?" We go into the city. The marketplace was a step away from Eamon's estate. People were hustling here and there, trying to sell off their goods. Leliana and I acted the interested patrons and went to look through the goods.

"Have you heard that they closed off the alienage?"

"Good, all the rioting there was starting to drive me mad."

"No, no, it was something else! Apparently there was a plague running rampant. They closed the gates in order to keep it in."

"Better for the elves than for the rest of us then." I glared at the man that said that before Leliana, tapped on my shoulder. I looked away. I hated that they were sold into slavery. We had to do something about that as quickly as possible. We moved over to another stall.

"I heard that my sister's nephew got caught in the back alleys by some thugs. Robbed him blind!"

"What are these soldiers doing with their time? I came to Denerim to escape bandits, not to be killed in a back alley."

"It's because Howe keeps on sending them incompetent noble men bastard sons."

"I swear why can't those nobles keep it in their breeches?" I heard Leliana snort at that. If we can get the soldier's to like us, it'd be a good thing.

"And they say there hasn't been a word from her?"

"Shh!...No, he has her all locked in her room, what do I do?"

"Keep your mouth shut that's what."

"But she's the qu-"

"I said shut it!" Leliana and I shared a glance again. I knew what this was. Queen Anora has been taken captive by Howe. There was no doubt in that but when would her servant come? That I wasn't sure of.

"Ah two beautiful ladies, may I ask your intentions in this marketplace are? It seems that you are merely browsing." I looked at the heavy accent and recognized the man as Master Ignacio. He had a shaven head and many wrinkles but his eyes were sharp.

"I haven't found anything that really peaks my fancy." I said. I knew this guy from the game was a Crow. I looked for Zevran but he wasn't anywhere to be seen.

"We have much to offer señorita, or should I say señora?"

"An Antivan then?" I said.

"Of course although Cesar handles the stock, I handle other affairs. Business meetings and deals." I remembered a certain quest to save a noble's son. If I was able to do that then we would have another noble at our side.

"Do you need any help?" I said. Ignacio laughed.

"Not from you señora."

"Hey have you found anything?" Talen said, coming up behind us. Ignacio's eyes twitched for a second.

"A few things, how about we go over there so we can tell you?" I said, pushing Talen away from the stalls. Zevran came up next to us and took a glance to Ignacio.

"Someone you recognize?" I asked.

"Someone that is better left alone for now." We all leaned against some of the housing near the alienage. I kept on looking at those closed gates. We needed to get in there somehow.

"So what have you found?" Talen asked.

"Elven riots and they have closed them in. I suspect that there is an underlying cause to this however." Leliana said.

"Some of the guards aren't doing their jobs out in the back alleys. If we can get the guards to like the wardens, I think that might be added support." I said.

"There was also an interesting piece of information concerning the queen." Zevran said.

"Queen Anora?" Talen asked.

"It sounds that she is being held captive by one Rendon Howe." Zevran said.

"Andraste's breath, that is not good."

"But we can also use this to our advantage. If the Queen really is being held captive and the wardens rescue her, she may be drawn to our side." Leliana said.

"If things would be that simple then the world would be easier to live in…" I said.

"I think I know what to do for now. Nia is right about the guards. If we can get them on our side and stop people from talking badly about the Wardens, then we'll have less work to do for our reputation."

"Then we have our first mission then."

* * *

**I know I said I'd be updating on the 17th but I got done editing early. Can you believe we only have 10 more chapters!? Crazy!**

**Shout out to AmmoKan, Exzellima, and ThelonewolfNT for favoriting/following this story!**

**Hypermuffins: **_Thank you :3 I saw the one you're writing about but I'm keeping away from DAI stories to avoid spoilers. I have tons of info to look up to make sure everything is accurate. I have all the books, the bestiary, and I constantly look up info on the Wiki. Thank you, I try to write in a way that is easy to imagine :3  
_**Shattered Soul 2021: **_I love the traveling chapters too, gives a break from the story. I know, sentiment right? But nothing that extreme is going to happen, well extreme things will happen but not that. And yes this one will have a happy ending :3  
_**Dforce76: **_I know right! 50 chapters! I couldn't have done it without support from you guys! :D the landsmeet is one of the favorite chapters, you'll see. It's gonna be awesome!  
_**EG: **_Yes I liked the song and thank you for your suggestion :3 I don't get many.  
_**PetalsOfSin: **_Thank you. I haven't gotten a lot of feedback from the changes I got in the earlier chapters and thank you for your offer, but there isn't anyone that can edit perfectly in 3 days with the way I upload everything lol_

**Thank you ZA for your review and I corrected the mistake Ariel Wild. Please review!**


	52. Here to Stay

9:31 Guardian 2nd

We went over to where Sergeant Kylon was stationed. The guards around him were just lounging around. He looked as if he was ready to punch them out of here.

"Hail Grey Warden. I know of your coming to the city, and in a turbulent time as well." Talen looked at him surprised.

"You know who I am?"

"Of course Loghain didn't put up those wanted posters all over the walls to redecorate the city. If there's something or someone troubling you, you have to go through the motions like everyone else."

"Actually we were wondering if we can help you." I said. Kylon chuckled before Talen crossed his arms.

"Oh you're serious? Well, that is unexpected but I won't turn away the help considering this lot I have to deal with…The first order of business I guess is at an establishment called the Pearl. It's a whorehouse near the docks of Denerim. I have heard of mercenaries that the nobles have hired are causing a lot of trouble. I want them out of there and make sure they're not burning, or bleeding out their ears. Leave them breathing Warden and you'll have my thanks."

"Alright Sergeant Kylon." Talen said and we started to go toward the gate that led to the alleys.

"While we are there we can also deal with this group if it is true." Leliana said, taking a slip of paper from the walls and showing Talen. It was the fake Grey Warden supporters that are at the Pearl.

"It seems too good to be true." Zevran said.

"Only one way to find out then." Talen said. We went toward the gate but then a young boy bumped into me.

"Message for you lady."

"What-"

"More messages to deliver." The boy said, running away before I could ask who he was.

"What was that?" Talen asked.

"Well, I got a message here…saying that there's an interested party at the tavern in case we want some 'help.' What do you think Talen?" He looked at the main gate then at the note.

"We might as well go look who this person is." We crossed the market place again and ended up near the tavern. I heard signs of a fight in the next corner. No doubt that one knight fighting with one of the GWs. We went in and it was bustling with activity. Nobles all around with guards. We went into one of the rooms and, sure enough, Master Ignacio was there.

"Ah come in. You have come here because of a note, no? I think we have interesting things to talk about."

"Be careful. This might be a trap." Zevran said.

"Zevran." Ignacio glared. "You are not my responsibility. The others might want you dead but, to me, you are already dead in my eyes."

"Nice to know."

"But you Warden, you are of great interest to me."

"Wow aren't I a popular one." Talen said flatly. "You better get to talking before my staff here starts swinging."

"There is much to do in Ferelden especially with a blight and civil war in the land. There are lots of people that are not getting along, no? Sometimes they do not want the other around anymore and they want someone to do something about it. The type of people who handle that thing can get…busy."

"…Go on."

"It takes time to do a job, of course we all have pride in our work, but the customer has certain expectations. There aren't many that can…do things in such manner. So someone who has made their interest known to us and live…they could need help no? You make some coin, everyone wins."

"Talen?" Leliana said. He was scowling.

"We can't turn away some work unless it helps us. Maybe getting some gold in might help us. So, how does this work?"

"I give you a scroll, you read it, maybe find someone interesting in there. If something tragic befalls on this person and you 'let me know' I will give you money. If you don't want to do it, maybe someone else will tell me he has an accident."

"Give me the scroll." Talen said.

"Here you go. Fine reading, Warden."

"You're a cautious little Weasel Ignacio. If the information you are giving us is false…"

"I have decided to be honest…and if you have noticed, I have not done anything wrong. I only gave a man something that is interesting to read."

"And you think that reason will save your hide when you find it nailed to a wall?"

"What more do you want whoreson? Do not let my continued mercy to change. Luck be to you Warden." Zevran scoffed and we went outside the tavern.

"You ok Zevran?" I asked.

"I apologize for you to see me in that light but the Crows being here does not mean things will be easy in this city."

"What does the scroll say Talen?"

"You remember that Grey Warden poster we found? It's a trap. It's led by a guy named Paeden who's in the Pearl. We find him, make sure he's dead, and we can leave. At least the mercenaries are there too. Kill two birds with one stone."

"Then let's go." I said. We went out into the back alleys. It was a mess of houses but Leliana already knew the layout and was leading us to the Pearl.

"It is not too far of a walk. We have to pass a bridge that is over Drakon River. Be wary of the stench. People throw out their…well…it is not a very clean river."

"Hmph, that much is certain." Zevran said.

"Sooooo…we're going to a whorehouse. This is going to be an interesting experience." I said.

"Will there be something or someone that will catch your interest mi niña?"

"What? No! Besides it shouldn't be too different from a stripper joint…" I mumbled.

"What was that?"

"Nothing." We passed through a gate which looked oddly familiar. There was something that was at the edge of my mind, something that I was forgetting. I looked at the path and saw stairs leading to the next alley. That's when I stopped and remembered. Zevran's quest.

"Is something the matter mi niña?"

"Uh…"

"Come on Nia, don't tell me you're afraid of-"

"And here is the fabled Grey Warden at last. The Crows send their regards, once again." Taliesen was on top of the stairs, traps right in front of us. I stepped in front of Zevran and drew my blades.

"And so they sent you Taliesen, or did you volunteer?"

"I volunteered. I was nearly jumping at the chance. The great Zevran Arainai going rogue? This I had to see for myself.

"Is that the truth? Well here I am, in the flesh."

"Oh do not seem so ready to fight Zevran, I came here offering a proposal. Return with me Zevran. I know the reason why you did this, everyone makes mistakes but it's still not too late to come back. We'll spin a story just like before."

"How I about I spin my dagger right in your-!"

"It is alright mi niña."

"You know that story won't hold up unless you kill me." Talen said, his staff in his hand.

"And I will not let that happen Talen." Zevran said.

"So it is true, you've gone soft!"

"I am sorry old friend but my answer is no. I will not return with you…you should have stayed in Antiva." I heard the shuffling of bodies coming down from the rooftops. There were eight crows in total not including Taliesen. Leliana got rid of the two archers right behind us in a flash. Six more to go. Zevran jumped over the traps and met Taliesen blade for blade. The two nearest ones, I rolled into. It didn't work and they got up in a flash, only to be burned down by Talen. He grunted in pain as he took an arrow to the shoulder. 5 on 4. Leliana got one more archer at the farthest but two more were coming toward us. I charged them, evaded one of their pair of daggers, and punched the woman right in the face. I heard her face cracking. I spun on my heel and got the daggers of the other man behind me. I kicked his groin and he groaned in pain. I saw his neck and cut into his spine. I heard an arrow go by my ear and I rolled to the other woman who was trying to get up. I cut her throat as she held her face that I cracked.

The last archer went down by Leliana. Talen growled as Taliesen and Zevran rolled down the stairs. Zevran had the idea of throwing Taliesen on top of the traps but he also thought about that. The traps caught Taliesen's back but he threw Zevran off him. Zevran's leg got caught. Taliesen got up but I jumped on him and stabbed his back. He shouted in pain as I choked him. He clawed at my arms and fell on me, I didn't let go. He got one of his hidden knives and stabbed me in the leg. I cried out pain but I didn't let go. Soon the clawing stopped. I let go once I knew that Taliesen wasn't getting back up.

"Nia!" Zevran shouted, the trap letting go of his leg. He limped toward me and looked at the knife.

"It's ok, Talen hand me a poultice."

"Here." Leliana said. She grabbed onto the arrow that was in his shoulder and pulled.

"OW! Andraste's tits!" Leliana slapped him for that one. Zevran took out the knife in a quick motion and I slathered the poultice right on top of it. I felt it healing the cut.

"Zevran, give me your foot."

"I will be fine mi niña."

"Don't give me that. Give me your foot." He took off his boots and I put the poultice on his leg.

"That was a jarring experience."

"But I believe that was all of the crows that were sent to kill me." Zevran said, hissing in pain as the poultice did its work.

"Good, I don't think I'd like another arrow to the shoulder." Talen said, rubbing the spot. Zevran got up as his foot healed.

"Oh Taliesen, you are such a fool." I looked at Zevran. This was it. This was the moment where I knew that he would suggest on leaving. "He is dead and I am free of the Crows. They shall assume that I died with him and, should I not make my presence known, they will not seek me out."

"And that means what exactly?" Talen asked.

"I do not know. I have options now when at first I had none and although the freedom that awaits me is enticing, I will not leave. There is so much to do still no?" My eyes widened.

"You're staying?" I asked.

"Of course mi niña. I could not bear to leave-" I launched myself at him and gave him a great hug. Leliana laughed and Talen shook his head but I was really happy that he wasn't leaving. Zevran laughed and I heard it reverberate as I hugged him.

"Give it a rest or at least get a room." Talen said.

"We can have a room once we are at the whorehouse!" Zevran said.

"Oh you had to ruin it didn't you?" I said, letting him go. He chuckled and gave me a quick kiss on the lips. "Hey!" Zevran laughed as I punched without intent. "Ok, I'll let that go, but the next time? You won't get away so easily."

"Of course mi…niña." I knew he wanted to say 'that' again and I shook my head.

"I'm glad you're staying."

"Ok, ok, enough of this. Don't forget we need to go to the Pearl. Eren's deadline is coming." Talen said. We all laughed and went our way up the stairs through the alley ways again. Zevran found my hand again and I let him grab it. It felt nice. We crossed the bridge and God the stench from the river was horrid!

"Oh God you weren't kidding about the smell!"

"And this is why the country smells like wet dog!"

"Just bear with it." Talen said. We found the docks and I heard seagulls. At least all I could smell from here was the smell of the salty sea. It took me back when me and my family went to the beach for fun. Those days were long gone. It was a pink building that we went through and the inside…wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. There were various colorful draperies and flowers all around. The fireplace made a nice light on the walls that seemed to grow brighter with it. The guard at the window to enter just nodded at us. We passed through the doors and Sanga, the proprietor nodded at our group.

"You're the ones here about the mercenaries? Good, I want them out. Not that they don't bring in money, is just the hassle the cause is more trouble than it's worth."

"Don't worry about it, we'll-" Then a man came flying from the other corner into one of the tables. Sanga rubbed her temple. That's when I saw her, dark skin, bandana, and a lot of piercings. Isabela.

"Now who is calling who the hussy? Get out with you. You should be lucky that you and your men were only robbed of your gold." The other two that were behind her were black and blue. All three of them rushed out.

"Isabela, how lovely it is to see you." Zevran said.

"Well that is a face I haven't seen for a while. Have you come to apologize for leaving me without a husband and then vanishing with a trace?"

"Ah Isabela it was just business no? Business that turned out fine for you, you did inherit the ship no?"

"You did me a favor. Glad that someone else put the knife in his back before I did. Never did like the greasy bastard. The Siren is a much happier place now that he is gone, and she shows it as well." Isabela said. I couldn't help but take a few glances at her bosom, she had enormous ones. I heard Talen talking to the mercenaries behind me.

"So you two know each other?" I said.

"Ah Isabela, this is Nia, my better half. Nia, this is Isabela, the queen of the eastern seas and the sharpest blade of Llomerryn."

"You finally got hitched?"

"He just wishes. Nia and I'm his friend." Isabela looked me up and down and I couldn't ignore that hungry look in her eyes.

"Not only that, you will be surprised to know that I am traveling with Grey Wardens."

"Did someone call me?" Talen said. I saw the mercenaries leaving, giving Talen the nasty eye. Isabela's look transferred from me to Talen.

"A Grey Warden? Is it true about the Grey Warden's famed endurance?"

"I'll be the one to say, yes." Leliana said. Talen groaned as his ears grew red.

"So you're the one that knocked that guy flat on his ass on a table?" I said.

"They call themselves fighters but they were only brutes, clumsy and predictable. They were no match for my quickness and wit."

"She calls herself a duelist for her many duels with warriors and the skills she gathered throughout the years." Zevran explained.

"I doubt I'll be able to learn anything, I'm a mage."

"Not only that it would take many days to truly teach you all I know. But I'm guessing you didn't come here just to speak to me did you?"

"One thing was to get rid of those mercenaries, the other is probably in one of those rooms." Talen described. Isabela chuckled.

"Well it is best you continue. I should get back to my game." Isabela winked at me and I raised an eyebrow. "I can see why Zevran chose you, you are a cute kitten." She went to sit down and we went into the hallway.

"You're getting red." Talen said.

"Hey that was the first time I got hit on by a woman, I think I can agree that was confusing."

"Confusing how?"

"I admit she was pretty." I mumbled. Leliana giggled. The sounds in the whorehouse were as anyone would expect. We reached the last door and it was locked.

"What's the password?"

"The griffon will rise again." Talen said.

"Come in, quickly!" We tried the door again and it opened.

"Another Grey Warden supporter." A man said, dressed in full and intricate armor.

"Uh oh." I said.

"Not just a supporter, that's a Grey Warden."

"Yeah, I'm not wasting anytime." Talen said, summoning a fireball into the group. We all got blown back by the blast and he quickly summoned ice to put out the fire that was spreading to the sheets and pillows. They were screaming as they cooked in their armor. Zevran and I gave them some quick deaths so they wouldn't suffer too much.

"Well that's done. Time to head back right?" I said.

"Let's go see what Ignacio has to say about this." Talen said. We got out and the bouncer passed us to look into the room.

"Tell Kylon I owe him one." Sanga said.

"Goodbye Zevran and kitten." We went out of the whore house and I was still confused.

"Why did she hit on me? Why not Talen or Leliana?"

"Probably because she can see we are together, yes?"

"You two do find your eyes very often." Zevran said.

"Also, why do I feel so confused?"

"Perhaps there is something that you haven't found about yourself?" Leliana said.

"Ok I admit that I sometimes think about some woman's bodies being beautiful but I only compare you know? My body against their body and oh I did not mean that!" Zevran and Leliana both laughed at me. "You know what? I'm just going to shut up now." I held my breath in when we passed the river. The sun was high in the sky when Kylon came over with his guards to meet us in the alley ways.

"Ah I was hoping I'd find you. I want to congratulate you on what happened in the Pearl. The Pearl's 'workers' will-" That's when a couple of the mercenaries came up behind us with their ragtag group.

"Nobody orders my men around except me!"

"Don't worry about sparing these ones. They won't miss an extra mercenary." There were seven of them and nine of us. For once we had the advantage. Talen ran up and let out his fire hands. I ran up and rolled, knocking three of them down. Leliana and Zevran made short work of them. 5 down, two more to go. Their leader wasn't wearing a helmet. That gave me an opportunity. I came behind him and knocked my knuckles into his dome. He groaned and held his head. I tripped him and bashed his head on more time. The archer was taken down by Kylon.

"And people voluntarily attack you. They must be soft. Here is the payment for your work. If you're interested in more, you know where to find me." Kylon said.

"Makes me wonder why are we always getting into trouble?" Leliana said.

"Because we have an 'attack us' sign somewhere?" I chuckled.

"Let's get going. I don't want to get mugged on the way to the market place." Talen said. We got there in a short amount of time now that all of us know the way there. We went into the tavern again where we found Eren there along with the others.

"Huh, what are you all doing here?" Eren asked.

"Running a few errands." Talen said, by passing him. Leliana followed him as well as Zevran.

"What have you found so far?" Eren asked.

"Unrest in the alienage, guards not doing what their supposed to do, and apparently Queen Anora was taken captive."

"What?" Eren asked me, making me sit down on a chair.

"Yeah, someone who works in the estate of Denerim, said that Rendon Howe took Anora and is holding her captive."

"This isn't good."

"I know. So what's the plan?"

"For now we can't do anything for Anora. We have no way to go into the estate. I have found a few nobles that would talk to me but no one is adamantly opposed against Loghain like us. It will take a lot of us to gain their favor."

"We'll do it Eren, you know that."

"I hope so Nia. At this point I keep on getting reminded of how little we can do."

"What about Alistair and Derek? Have you seen them around?"

"Derek found a blacksmith to see what he can do with the drake and dragon scales. Alistair mentioned something about his sister but he didn't want to go talk to her unless you were around or I went with him."

"You want to handle that now?" I asked.

"We might as well. Morrigan, Sten, and Alfred are back at the estate. I think Alistair should be there as well." Eren said, getting up. Talen came by and motioned me to come over.

"So are you going to be coming with us on the next one?" Talen whispered.

"No, I'm going to be going with Eren to do something for Alistair. You want me to ask someone?"

"No it's fine. I'll see if I can find someone on the way. Eren, we're going out of the city for a bit. Don't wait up." Talen said. Leliana and Zevran followed him. Hopefully they can find someone on the way toward their next assignment. Eren and I went out of the tavern and back toward the estate. Alistair was pacing in the main hall.

"Oh good to see you two."

"Hey Alistair, you ok?" I said.

"Well you two are very close friends and everything so there is a favor I would like to ask you. I have a sister, well half-sister. Her name is Goldanna. We shared the same mother and I found that she was in the city."

"Why didn't you contact her?" Eren asked.

"With the fighting and the blight I never had the time but now that we're here I would like to visit her."

"Alright, might as well since we have some time."

"Good, she owns a home near a blacksmith out near the marketplace. Sister, sssiiiisssterrr. Ok now I'm rambling, let's go, let's just go." Eren chuckled and all three of us went out. We circled the marketplace until we found where Goldanna lived. "Here, this is the right address. Alright, let's go in." We knocked and went inside. "Um hello?"

"Yes? Are you here to get wash done? I charged 2 bits to a bundle and don't trust that antivan woman across the street. She's foreign and will rob you blind."

"I'm not here to have any wash done. I'm Alistair, your…brother."

"My what?"

"You sure this is she?" Eren asked.

"Yes I'm very sure. My name is Alistair, we share a mother who worked as a servant girl in the royal palace."

"What? No that can't be true when mother died, I asked about the babe but the guards told me that you both died! Gave me coin to shut my mouth."

"The babe didn't die, here I am." Goldanna scoffed.

"Some good that'll do me. The coin they gave me dried up very quickly I might add. I have 5 mouths to feed and if you aren't going to pay or do anything I suggest you leave."

"You will not talk to my friend that way."

"And who are you? Some noble friend that has come to see his half-sister in squalor."

"Hey Eren is a Grey Warden and you will show him some respect!"

"Oh a Grey Warden huh? Such important people you have around you."

"Well whatever you were hoping to find here Alistair, it isn't."

"No, there wasn't anything to be found here at all."

"I have nothing you want boy unless you have some sort of coin to help what little 'family' you do have."

"He was only here hoping to find some semblance of family." Eren said softly. Goldanna sighed.

"I'm sorry but I can honestly say that I have no reason to be familiar to you."

"I swear Goldanna that after everything is over, I will try to get you and your family the help that you need." Alistair said.

"Some good that promise will do me. If that's all you have to say, then you can show yourselves out the door." Alistair sighed and we all went out. "I…I can't believe it. That gold digging shrew is my sister? I…I don't know what I was expecting but wasn't family supposed to, you know, be all accepting and everything?"

"Alistair look at it this way, you don't need to be blood related to be family."

"I know but…I was hoping."

"Alistair, you have a family. The Grey Wardens. It might not seem like much but know that I won't let anything happen to you, unless it's caused by me." Alistair chuckled a bit.

"Same goes for me. You're my family as well Alistair."

"I…thank you both that…that makes me feel better. Anyway, we shouldn't dawdle too much here. We still have a lot to do in order to stop Loghain."

"I think it's best we take a break from the city and go back to the estate." Eren said.

"I'm for that as well. Come on Alistair, I'll make you some garlic bread with melted cheese."

"Oooh! Can you also make your soup for me? Pretty please?"

"Alright, alright. Soup and cheese for you."

* * *

**Yay Zevran stayed! :D We're about to wrap here people! Any guesses as to what is going to happen next?**

**Shout out to chaotic-aristocrat, IReadNoNonsense, Starlight and Moonbeams, and Hirdas for favoriting/following this story!**

**Buggy300: **_I know right!? 7 months writing and we have come to this point! :D First awakening then hell and each one is going to be a separate story. If I try to combine EVERYTHING it's going to be way too_ long.  
**EG: **_Thank you :3  
_**Shattered Soul 2021: **_Oh it is going to be epic, that much is sure. I'm so excited for the end woo!_

**Please Review, nothing says 'i like this' than a review :3**


	53. Unexpected Friend and the Denerim Estate

9:31 Guardian 2nd

I went to the cook and found some garlic bread and made some quick soup so Alistair can feel better about what happened between him and his sister. Whatever she was, that was definitely not a sister. Family accepts you no matter what. Eren and Alistair were at the table. Eren was telling him about what me and Leliana found out.

"I knew that Rendon Howe would do anything to get his way but kidnapping Anora?"

"Don't count out that Loghain might have planned his own daughter's kidnapping."

"No that sounds like Loghain."

"Here you go Alistair, Eren, some lunch for you until the rest come back."

"Where did everyone go anyway?" Alistair said, taking a bite of his bread.

"Talen said that he had some business just outside the city. Derek is at Wade's Emporium, hoping that the blacksmith there knows how to do something with the scales he's collected over our journey." Eren explained.

"Wynne is likely at the Wonders of Thedas. I hope Jowan isn't getting into too much trouble." I said.

"They're together at the moment." Eren said. I felt something wet on my hand and Alfred was there panting. I gave him a small pat on the head and he laid it in my lap.

"There's also a few things going on in the Alienage. They have closed off the gates because of a plague. I have a feeling there's something more going on. Unfortunately we have no way into the Alienage either."

"We're stuck at the moment then." Eren said.

"Not unless something literally falls into our lap." I said.

"Which it never does anyway." Alistair said.

"We might as well rest then. We don't have many chances to do that." Eren said, getting up and going out.

"It's weird though, staying here and not doing anything but at the same time we can't do anything!" I said, putting my head on the table. Alfred whined. I patted his head again.

"There's nothing we can do Nia…you know I thought about what you two said and you're right. Blood doesn't mean anything. Sure Goldanna was my half-sister but she wasn't there during the important moments like you and Eren. Thank you for being there."

"No problem Alistair, you know my shoulder is always ready for you in case you need to cry." Alistair chuckled.

"Thank you. I might as well go and talk to Eamon for a bit and see what he has to say about all that we've found. Thank you again for the food." Alistair said walking out as well. I sighed and rested my head on my hand. I decided to go up to my own room, Alfred following me. I wrote down all that I could. I wish I could punch Howe in the face before letting Eren kill him. That's the thing, I don't know whether I'll be able to get to the quest. Since we have multiple Wardens, I have a feeling that we're going to be going in two different directions to make sure we get everything done. We'll see.

9:31 Guardian 4th

Much more information to write about. Talen did his thing with the Crows and came with something unexpected, then all the two most important GWs got kidnapped and I had to save them.

Talen came back early during the next day, on the third, having saved the noble man's son which turned out to be good since that noble will talk about the GWs on a good note. I was still asleep for this. When I woke up, I went back into the dining hall in order to eat some breakfast. Oghren, Leliana, Morrigan, and Wynne were there all up and early. Well Oghren was passed out drunk on the table.

"Hey Leliana, how went the interesting reading?"

"Oh good, very good. One of the nobles read something that pertained to him so now we have an ally." Leliana said, eating some bits of meat and veggies.

"What are you two talking about?"

"Nothing." We both said at the same time. Wynne gave us a look but we weren't going to budge. She wouldn't like the fact that we played part to assassins. Jowan came in with a very nice armor set and sat down.

"Wow Jowan, you finally get decked out with some real armor?"

"Thank Derek for that. The blacksmith at Wade's Emporium worked on this all day yesterday. He said that it'll chaff but it's really quite well done."

"Is that what the drake scale have been used for? It looks marvelous."

"I heard that Derek gave him some more to work with as well. Gave him some of the money we found in the ruins. Wade was happy to hear about that at least. Hopefully with all of this practice, he can use the Dragon scale for something."

"I bet you Derek would love to wear something made of Dragon scales." I said, going over to the cook's side and getting me some breakfast. I made myself two eggs, some bacon, and a piece of bread on the side. I went to sit down with the rest. Zevran came through the door and smelled deeply.

"Ah something smells delicious no?" Jowan choked on his drink before Zevran sauntered down and kissed me on the top of my head. "May I request some breakfast from you mi niña?"

"Sure, give me a few minutes."

"We do have a cook Zevran." Wynne said.

"Ah but my dear Wynne, nothing tastes more delicious than a beautiful woman cooking your meal."

"Basically, get in the kitchen, make me some food, and I'll sleep with you." I said.

"Unfortunately she hasn't agreed to the last one." I pinched Zevran's cheek and Leliana laughed. Morrigan rolled her eyes.

"I do not see why you even put up with his behavior."

"Oh my dear Morrigan, are you lonely as well?"

"Do not even try elf, I know your kind all too well."

"I was just about to say what marvelous eyes you possess." I shook my head and went to where the cook was again.

"Again with you?"

"Don't worry, I'm cooking again. I'm not here to ask for anything." The cook scoffed at me. I did two more eggs with tomatoes, onions, and a green pepper they had around. I grabbed a few slices of bread and slightly toasted them with some butter. Once the huevos rancheros were done, I put everything onto a plate and went out.

"You are a master indeed, Zevran. You win the bet."

"Much obliged, madame."

"I hate you all."

"Did I miss something?" I said, giving the plate to Zevran. Jowan chuckled.

"Only something hilarious."

"Need I remind you Jowan that you need extra training from me?"

"I'm shutting up then." Jowan said, taking more sips of his drink. I sat down and ate my breakfast. After I was done Alistair, Derek, Eren, and Talen came in with Sten right behind them.

"I'm guessing with your faces there's something-" That's when I saw Anora's elf trailing right behind all of them. "Bad?"

"As you all are semi aware of, Queen Anora has been held against her will in Rendon Howe's Denerim estate. We are here to retrieve her. This is Anora's handmaiden and-"

"Please you must retrieve the Queen. I have a feeling that Howe will do something terrible to her!"

"And that's that." Eren said.

"I must go for now but I will be waiting in front of the estate for all four of you." She said, scampering out as quickly as she came in.

"All four of you?" Jowan wondered.

"It is a trap if they require all four Grey Wardens."

"That was my thought as well but at this time, we have no choice. Queen Anora is a powerful ally at we need her support."

"Only you four are going to be going?" Leliana asked.

"No. Alistair and I will be going. At this point the both of us can grab for the throne and I think we're the ones he wants. Derek and Talen are going to try to get their way into the Alienage."

"Splitting up then." Derek said.

"Yes. Nia, Morrigan, Leliana, you'll be coming with us. Derek and Talen, take who you need to the Alienage. If you need to get Shale to break open the doors. We're going to the estate now." Eren said.

"Yes, time to punch Howe in the mouth! Wait, Shale?" I said.

"Apparently, Talen found a golem while on his travels outside of Denerim.." Eren chuckled. He went out with Morrigan trailing after him. I looked at Talen and Leliana with incredulity.

"What you haven't noticed the golem that's standing out near the front gates?" Talen laughed. I stared at him for a second before jumping up from the table and going out. I opened the door and looked toward the corner that Shale would take when you'd get to this portion of the game. Sure enough, she was standing there like a still statue. My mouth flew open. She was tall, big, and covered with crystals that seem to burst with energy. Her head turned to look at me as I found someone standing behind me.

"Oh another one and this one is gaping like a fish."

"But...how...you...and..."

"Is it having difficulty speaking? Yes I know, a walking and talking golem. Now will it stop fluttering its mouth like a fish. It is distracting." Wynne laughed behind me.

"Good Morning Shale."

"Elder mage." I looked at Wynne, pointed at Shale, and gave her my 'What the hell?' face.

"Talen can explain it if you wish."

"The Fire mage? Ah so it questions how I came to be here? I was controlled by a control rod leading up to Dragon's Peak, was it? Then the Fire mage killed the one that held it and I awoke. At first I questioned my purpose on being there and the Fire mage recommended joining him to kill darkspawn. As long as I'm squishing the heads of evil fleshy things, I am fine."

"...Wow."

"Impressive I know."

"I didn't think it would happen either." Talen said coming up with us. "But now we have a golem on our side. Pretty awesome isn't it?"

"Of course I am." Shale said. My head couldn't wrap my mind around it. I had thought Shale was destroyed.

"Wait, if Shale is here, then what was the rubble you guys found at Honnleath?"

"You mean that foul representation of me that a passing artist made? I would have crushed it myself were it not for the son of the squishy mage that ordered me not to. The only thing that was good for was for the pigeons to crap on instead of me. Didn't stop them either...now will you stop opening your mouth repeatedly? It is getting tiring." My brain hurt at all of it but then I laughed at the impossibility of it all.

"I think we broke her again." Talen said.

"This is amazing! Oh I'm glad to have you on our side Shale." I giggled. "This is awesome!"

"...You are too happy about this." Shale said.

"Oh sorry um I'm Nia. Very nice to meet you Shale."

"Hm how is it that you managed to convince a spirit to be on your side? There are many mages so you must have found some way to convince it."

"What?" Talen and Wynne said at the same time.

"I'm not a spirit."

"It isn't? Here I thought the fade bleeding out of it meant that it was another mage." We all looked at each other.

"What do you mean the fade bleeds out of her?" Wynne asked.

"Do you not feel it? It is the same as my augmentation crystals yet my crystals are more of a fountain. It's is a small drip compared to my own abilities, a very slow drip." Wynne looked at me with an expression of confusion.

"I'm sure we can figure it out later. Right now, you have to get ready to help the queen." Talen said. I nodded.

"Good. I was beginning to get tired of all the questions. I hope its head doesn't get squished. I would hate to see spirit guts everywhere." Shale said sarcastically.

"Be careful Nia." Wynne said.

"I'll be fine, it's Eren I'm worried about." I said. I went up to my room and got my armor on. I thought about what Shale said to me. It's true that a part of Halo is inside me but the fade bleeds that she was talking about confused me. The only ones that can command the fade were mages right? Well there was Justice who was a spirit warrior but he was a full spirit. Maybe I had the same power? I didn't want to think too much on it. I got my daggers and went out to the main hall. Alistair, Eren, Morrigan, and Leliana were all ready to go. Shale watched us with a curious glance.

"Let's get going." Eren said. We went out of the estate, into the marketplace and out the back alleys. We passed by the river again and through some major cross streets before I saw the Estate loom over us. We went through some gates and down some stairs. There were people making a ruckus outside the main gates with guards all over to keep them from rampaging inside. The carpenters and stonemasons's were arguing when Erlina whispered to us.

"Over here." We all go to where she was. "Where are the other two Grey Wardens?"

"They're dealing with some important matters that came up. Alistair and I will be enough." Erlina looked worried before shaking her head.

"I understand. The servant's entrance is on the other side of the estate, through this small corridor. The crowd is gathering the attention of the guards. We just slip in right through. We must be vigilant once we're inside. Arl Howe is here." I saw Eren bristle but didn't continue that part of the conversation. We went past the guards and people, following the small trail. We were walking until a guard saw us and called on a few. They came out through a side passage, four well-armed guards came out to meet us. Morrigan froze the first two. Alistair and Eren got the attention of the other two. Leliana got an arrow in one of the frozen ones. I came up behind the second frozen one and shattered him. The other two were knocked out by the shields of Eren and Alistair. We crossed the gardens and we saw the guards at the door to the entrance.

"Come this way." Erlina said and guided us to a small enclosure. There she moved a few bushes around and took out some armors. "There are the armors that the guards wear. Wear them so you can pass by unnoticed."

"Are we really going to go through with this?" Alistair wondered.

"We must do it to save the Queen." Eren said.

"Then this Queen should be very grateful once we rescue her." Morrigan mumbled. We dumped our armor and wore the ones the guards wore. I felt the immediate weight. Poor Morrigan was almost stumbling.

"The daggers stay." I said.

"Yes, yes, quickly! I shall have someone take these away to Eamon's estate." Erlina said. We got into position.

"Let me distract the guards. Hide in those bushes over there. Once I have them away from the entrance, go in. Do not dawdle." Erlina said. Eren nodded and we went to go hide.

"Does anyone else feel their armor rubbing on some spots?" Alistair wondered.

"Sh!" I said. She screamed about darkspawn and we managed to get by unnoticed into the estate. Erlina slipped past the guards that she fooled and came in with us.

"Now you must be careful. The cooks do not look closely, what is another guard yes? But please do not attract attention to yourself." Erlina said.

"That means no stumbling Morrigan."

"I will kill you after this Alistair."

"No talking." Eren said. He agreed with Erlina and we went off. We came out through the kitchens into the dining hall. There was a lot of ruckus with guards fooling around and everything.

"Why did Arl Howe settle himself in an estate where all the family got killed? I say build yourself a new one, let the one with ghosts rot!"

If I remembered correctly this was Vaughn's old estate used to be before the elven riots started. If that's the case then they were able to go in here and kill everyone, excluding Vaughn since he was in the dungeons right now. We slipped passed, Eren holding onto Morrigan's arm to help her walk at least. We were passing by the guard quarters now, and the kennels. We went pass the main gates and Erlina went into a small hallway. The door that was leading into Anora's room was shining with magic.

"This is not good." Morrigan mumbled.

"We are here my lady." Erlina whispered.

"Thank the Maker! I would love to greet you properly but unfortunately my 'host' wasn't content on leaving me heavily guarded. He has sealed the door with magic."

"The magic will not disperse unless we kill the mage responsible for it." Morrigan said.

"It is as your companion says. The mage in question is by Rendon Howe's side."

"Then we have our mission." Eren said. "Don't worry Queen Anora, we will get you out."

"Thank you Warden."

"Rendon Howe's room is at the end of the halls to the left. Please come back swiftly."

"You really don't think he's in his room." Alistair said.

"I doubt it but we have no choice but to check." Leliana said. We go through the hallway and to the left. Leliana saw a locked door and quickly picked it.

"Leliana!" Eren harshly whispered until the room we saw was full of treasure. She gave him a smirk before starting to pocket everything. I got as much as I could carry as well. I will count it later. After that small detour, we continued on. She locked the door again and we made our way into his room. He wasn't here.

"I knew he wouldn't be in here. We wouldn't be so lucky." Eren said.

"There is a downstairs though." Alistair mentioned. Eren and Alistair went while I went to the chest that was near the bed. I opened it and found the Grey Warden documents that Howe kept to himself. I heard a scuffle and followed the rest.

"Do you think you could-Alistair, is that you?" I joined the others and there was Riordan in the armor that the guard had on.

"I'm not sure…wait…I recognize you, you were at my Joining. Don't worry he's one of us. He's a warden from Orlais, Jader, no Mordred, ugh. I'm sorry I can't seem to remember your name."

"I am Riordan friends, senior Warden of Jader but born and raised in Highever. I am glad to be home."

"Are these your papers?" I said, handing him what I found.

"Yes, thank you for finding them. These are the records of the names of the dead I found at Ostagar including Duncan's own recruitment records. There are also copies of the Joining ritual. It does not seem that Howe was able to crack the encryption."

"The Joining? Then we can induct other Grey Wardens?" Eren asked.

"If there was an opportunity, I would. Ferelden sorely needs them right now. In order for it to work, however, we would need fresh darkspawn blood and a drop preserved from an Archdemon. Unfortunately when I came into the vault to retrieve it, they were gone. Whether they were destroyed or confiscated by Loghain, I am not sure."

"We'll need to get that back then." Alistair said.

"I know, but for now we need to find Howe. Do you know where he might be?"

"The last I saw of him is when he went down into the dungeons. He hasn't come up since and I assume that he is still down here."

"Then let's go and get him. Riordan, try to find your way out and go to Eamon's estate, he's our ally."

"Thank you, may the Maker guide your path." Riordan said. Erlina came by with another buff elf.

"Wait, here are your armors. Unfortunately the man carrying them got caught. We would not want them to be confiscated." Erlina said.

"Thank God, hello armor. I missed you."

"You like that armor a bit too much." Eren said.

"Hey it's good armor." We put on our normal stuff and headed down into the dungeon.

"A dungeon, why doesn't this surprise me?" Eren said.

"Because it's Howe that's why." I said. We got to the door but the person behind us heard us.

"Who are you?" Eren looked at the rest of us and motioned for Morrigan to come with him. He opened the door and she did a cone of cold to the three men that were standing guard. We all took one and shattered them which tripped the trap that they had behind them. The barrels exploded and knocked all of us down.

"Ow. That wasn't smart." I said, getting up. Eren groaned, half of his face turned pick.

"We have to get going. No doubt that explosion would have alerted the rest that were down here." Eren said. Three more guards started to come down from the other end of the hall way. Leliana got the first one down with an arrow through the throat. I ran and rolled into the other one. I quickly bashed his nose in before needing to evade a slash from the third one. Alistair came and got him good with his shield. I finished off the one I left on the ground and Eren killed the one Alistair got. Another two were at the end of the hall. I zig zagged to avoid their arrows and tumbled into them. I got one in the throat but the other got up and began to run. Morrigan let out a cold spell at froze him. Leliana shattered him with her arrow. I'll never get tired of that. We tried the cell door but it wouldn't open for nothing.

"We'll go the long way around I guess." I said.

We opened the door and found lone guard patrolling. Leliana took him out quickly. I went ahead and made sure everyone walked slowly and quietly. I went to the closed door with Morrigan.

"Blizzard?" She nodded. She began to work on the spell. When I saw she was ready, I opened the door. There were six guys there in total. She let out the spell and everyone in there got frozen, along with the mabaris. Leliana took my place and shot them all down. The noise caused the ones in the other room to come out. Four guys in total with one mage. I twirled around the melee guys and allowed Eren and Alistair to get their attention. I jumped at the mage and got him down on the ground. I punched his face and slit his throat. I got up and barely avoided a decapitation from a guard. All I got was a cut on the cheek. I fell but not before kicked him where it hurt. He groaned but ignored it. I rolled away and got up. I twirled out of his reach and we were back to back. I punched his helmet and it made a sick ringing noise. The guard shouted out in pain, grabbing his helmet. I punched the same spot until the guy went down, the helmet caved in his head. The other three were taken care of by Eren and Alistair.

"We need to kill as many of these as we can. The less guards Howe can call on the better." Eren said. His eyes were dark and I was getting worried about him.

"Eren, you ok?"

"I'm fine. I'm dealing justice for my parents." We came out of the room to another closed door. Eren and Morrigan were up first, she with her freezing spells and him with the strength to shatter them. We were in the main torture room. The bodies were stacked high in one pile near the door. The jailers and torturers were in the main room. Morrigan froze three, Eren and Alistair shattered all of them. Then she made a spirit cage for the main jailor. He screamed in pain as he was dealt in constant spirit damage. Two more were left. They weren't wearing helmets though, better for me. I came in and did powerful punches at their craniums. The two fell and Leliana killed them quickly with her arrows. The guy in the crushing prison fell dead when the effects wore off. There was one man that was still alive on the torture rack.

"You there! Hurry up and untie me from this now!" I shrugged and let him go.

"Was this supposed to be a lesson from my father? Did he think it was funny after so long?" He said, rubbing his hands and ankles.

"And you are?" I wondered.

"Wait, didn't my father send you down here? My name is Oswyn, son of Bann Sighard, Dragon's Peak Bannorn. If my father didn't send one of his soldiers, then who should I be thanking for this rescue?"

"My name is Eren, of the Grey Wardens."

"Then I see the reason why you have come here Warden for it was your people who have suffered the most. You have my gratitude as well as the gratitude of all from the Dragon's Peak Bannorn. If my father did not even know where I was, then he does not know the snakes that he has allied himself with. If you talk to him, I'm sure my father would have some sort of reward for you." Eren looked smug about that. Another noble to our cause.

"Then may I ask him to side against Loghain during the Landsmeet?"

"So the Landsmeet was here after all? Howe said the Landsmeet was called off after the Arl of Redcliffe died. I swear on my life Warden, that my father will make sure to speak out against Loghain. Now, if you would excuse me. I have had enough of this place." He left and I wanted to destroy this place for all the poor people and innocents that were killed here. They had fricking hanging bodies next to the spikes in the wall for Christ's sake!

"Howe is a sick and depraved man for allowing all of this to happen." I said.

"Let's go." Eren said. We were right in front of the next closed door. There were six men in their and a hallway at the end. The two that came out were taken down by Leliana. The other three were run over by Eren and Alistair. I came in after Morrigan froze one. I shattered them with my fists. The other two were bashed into the wall simultaneously by Eren and Alistair. The last guy held onto his throat as Leliana's arrow stuck out of it. We made our way into the cells. There was one with a mad brother that someone was looking for and the one that held Soris. Leliana got the keys from the Jailor. I went to the one with Soris.

"Hey, you ok?"

"What? Who, you aren't one of the jailors. Do you know what month is it? Please, it's…been so long since I've been down here. What of Arl Urien?"

"Arl Urien died months ago and…" I heard the click of the door. "It's the third of Guardian, 9:31 Dragon. There you're free to go."

"He's dead then…who's ruling? His son Vaughn chained me down after my cousin saved Shianni and…I woke up here."

"Well you'll be happy to know that Vaughn is also down here. The Arl was taken and the king is dead but you can learn all about that later. What's your name?"

"Soris."

"Alright Soris, I have some friends that need to get into the Alienage for me. They're at Eamon's estate right around the market place just ask for the Wardens Talen and Derek. Can you do that for me?" I asked.

"I…of course but why would they want to go into the Alienage?"

"Because a lot of good elves are being taken away and we need to do something about that. Go, we've cleared the rooms. Just take one of the guards armor and walk out of here through the servant's entrance."

"Thank you, who are you by the way?"

"Nia, now go." Soris went ahead and we took the keys to the Templar that was caged.

"Retreat…that is what they said. The horn! I heard the horn and we turned, we rode, and the screams! They scream and screamed and-" The Templar shuddered and hugged the wall, his head going up in down in silent sobs.

"Are we really wasting our time with-"

"Shush Morrigan. Hey, it's all right." I said, going down to his level.

"Blood, there's a smell of blood. Can you smell the blood mother? They said…the meat…it was only darkspawn and we ate them too! In the swamp, their bodies in the swamp and the witch. The witch."

"There's nothing else we're going to get out of him Nia."

"We can't leave him here." I opened the cell door more and moved out of the way. "There, you're free."

"Free? Free and safe? Maybe next door?" He said, wobbling out.

"Are you sure that was wise?" Morrigan crossed her arms.

"I wasn't going to let him suffer here. Let's go." We went down the hallway again, not meeting any resistance. I saw the cell door that led out of here down the end of the hall. One more door. Eren was clenching and unclenching his fist. His face was in a scowl and I could hear him grinding his teeth.

"Eren." I said softly.

"There's no point in waiting for the inevitable." Eren opened the door. Howe was in front of us with his many guards and the mage right behind him that was keeping Anora in his room.

"Well, if it isn't Bryce's little spitfire all grown up, trying to fill the void that his daddy left. And what have we here? Isn't this the same whore that your mother gave to you after that barn incident?" I don't hate. I really don't. Hate is too strong a word but I knew that I hated Howe then and there. "I made it perfectly clear to Loghain, your family is gone and long forgotten."

"You may forget but the memories burn at my very soul Howe." Eren growled, his voice deep and commanding. Alistair gave me a worried look but my eyes were glaring at Howe as well.

"You know what happened to your parents, dear small Eren? You father bleed to death while your mother begged me not to kill her. Your other family as well are dead and gone. Your brother is rotting in Ostagar, his Antivan whore of a wife was burned with the other corpses, and the brat will be next after you."

"You fucking touch Oren and I'll cut you to pieces!" I shouted. Howe smirked and Leliana pulled me back.

"And after all of that, look what's left? A foolish son desperate to kill me who will likely end his days in Darkspawn shit in the Deep Roads, and a whore that will trail along with him. Your organization the Grey Wardens are gone. You are the last of nothing. You've lost." I was furious, my knuckles were white, holding onto my daggers to not lose my head. Then I saw Eren's body become…calm.

"Look at you lying to yourself Howe. Nothing you say will make me fall because first and foremost…" Eren said, wielding the sword and shield of his family in front of him, "I am a Grey Warden." Howe was taken aback at how cool Eren seemed.

"And there it is. That look in your eye…every single Cousland success that has held me back. It looks like you have done wonderful for yourself. Your father would be proud. I, on the other hand, want you dead more than ever!"

That's when the fight started for Eren, for his family, and for everything that Howe put us through that night.

* * *

**You have to love cliffhangers. Did anyone see the Shale part? :D A nice surprise for everyone!**

**Shout out to BumbleJay and sdren for following this story!**

**Shattered Soul 2021: **_If someone does a fanfic of my fanfic just for Zia, that would be awesome! Yes as much as I love Zevran, it won't be happening. Isabela gets a greater part in DA2 believe me. Goldanna is a bitch. You should keep your legs closed if you can't afford more children...and we'll see what happens to her later_ :3  
**chaosrin: **_Lol we'll see in the later chapters and in DA2. Thank you_ :3  
**EG: **_Thank you! I love your reviews :D  
_**Dforce76: **_You won't have to wait for long. Muahaha!  
_**GamerGeekGirl: **_Unfortunately I can't reveal who Nia is going to end up with in DAI yet, you'll have to wait like the rest but Cia would be cute..._

**Please Review :3**


	54. Prison Break!

9:31 Guardian 2nd Howe's Estate

Leliana shot two of his guards before they came at us. Eren growled and launched himself at Howe. I clocked a guard with my elbow before Alistair got him. The mage was getting ready for a lighting attack headed for Eren. I tackled him to the ground and stabbed him through the eye. The other mage was at the other side. Alistair was having trouble with Howe's guard. I jumped on the guards back, slashing his throat. A boulder got me on the back and I rolled all the way to the wall. The mage had a protective shield but that was gone once Alistair cleansed the area.

I saw Eren and Howe in equal combat. Howe wasn't fighting fair, aiming low and in spots I knew would hurt and sting more than were lethal. The second mage was down. Howe was the last one standing. Howe slashed at Eren's face and got him in the cheek. Eren pummeled his face down with his shield but Howe didn't get to his place on treachery alone. His shoulder passed and got Eren again in the face. The last attack got rid of Eren's helmet. I had an internal debate of whether or not to help him. This was his fight for his family and himself. Howe smirked and aimed high but Eren did what I usually did; he crouched low in an almost boxing position and tackled Howe to the ground.

I took one step toward him before Alistair shook his head. Morrigan scoffed at it all. Eren stabbed Howe through his leg and Howe screamed in horror, not being able to move anymore. Howe grabbed at the sword but Eren smashed in in the face again. He must have broken Howe's nose because he held it gingerly, groaning in pain.

"Well, what are you waiting for?" Eren looked at me. "You told me to save you a punch." I looked at Howe. He was bleeding in several places, his face a purplish and bloody mess and his leg was bleeding on the floor. I wanted to say he wasn't worth it but I am a petty person. I grabbed Howe's collar and sucker punched him. A few teeth fell on the ground next to him. I stomped on his gut for good measure.

"You are a rotten bastard. There are special places in hell for you." I said, walking away.

"I deserved…more…" Howe cried out in pain as Eren took out the Cousland family sword.

"No, you got what you deserved for loveless traitors." Eren held the sword in both hands and swung. Howe's head rolled on the floor and his body slumped to the ground, lifeless. Eren sucked in some breath and gave out a loud roar that gave me a fright. "Father! Mother! Oriana and everyone from Castle Highever! Your deaths have been avenged!" Eren shouted. He was left panting. I felt a few tears at my eyes as Eren came over to our group. "It's over…" He whispered and laid his head on my shoulder.

"Yeah…"

"Do you…" Eren sniffed. "Do you think they heard me?" His body was shaking and he held me close to him.

"They did Eren, I know they did." The grief for both of us, was over. It was all over. It was time to heal. It was time to let go. Eren let me go and wiped his tears and cleared his throat.

"Thank you everyone." Alistair patted Eren's shoulder. Leliana wiped her tears and Morrigan was uncharacteristically silent at all this. I saw that look in her eyes when she saw Eren. The wistfulness and the pain. Morrigan loved him. I knew then. That meant that their parting would be that much harder for both of them.

"We shouldn't stay here for long. Let us see if there are any more innocents in the cells." Eren said and we all nodded. I walked over to the cells in the next room and I saw Morrigan and Eren share a small kiss. It was a private moment for both of them. I saw Vaughn slumped against the wall but he wasn't moving and I heard a prayer. The Templar that found Jowan was in his cell. I opened his cell door with the key that I had.

"Andraste, Bride of the Maker, have mercy on me…Alfstanna…is that you, little sister? No…the hair isn't the same and the skin…are you real?"

"Yes I am. What are you doing here?"

"My name is…Irminric, knight lieutenant of the Denerim Chantry…are you one of the teryn's men?"

"This man is suffering from lyrium withdrawal, has all the signs to it, confusion, weepiness. He probably doesn't even know what he's saying. If the Grand Cleric knew that he was in here, the Chantry would be in an uproar. No noble has authority on the Templars."

"Then that's another thing that we have against Loghain."

"I…failed…Maker, forgive me…I failed…Now I know not what he has done…"

"Who are you talking about?" I asked.

"The…blood mage…he ran from the circle after attacking mages and Templars. He ran from the tower and near Redcliffe, I spotted him…but the Teyrn's men…they took him and then placed me here." Alistair and I shared a look.

"Was this mage's name Jowan?"

"Yes. He destroyed his phylactery…I was alone…we were spreading out, trying to look for him…You…you're real aren't you? Please, if this isn't a dream, help me."

"Ok, I'll help you."

"Give this ring…it's for my sister…for Alfstanna…tell her I'm sorry and to pray for me…"

"You can come with us. The cell door is open, you're free." Leliana said.

"No…no…I failed…give the ring to my sister…" He got down on one knee and started to pray again.

"There's nothing that we can do know." Alistair said.

I went to the cage that had Vaughn in. Normally he would be snoring like a chainsaw, but he was uncharacteristically silent this time. I opened the cell door and checked inside. He was sitting against the wall and I was about to go touch him when Morrigan stopped me.

"You do not have to waste time with him. He is a corpse."

"What?"

"He is dead." I looked carefully. His skin was pale, blood likely pooling in his body on his legs. His chest wasn't rising or anything.

"Another victim of Howe then." Eren said. I remembered what Vaughn did to the elves. I hate to say it but he got what he deserved. There was no point in releasing him anyway. He never did contribute to the landsmeet.

"It looks like we've done all we can." Alistair said..

"Yeah, let's go. I don't want to stay here any longer." I said.

"Fine by me." Eren said. We got out of the room and saw some stairs up to the main floor. I went out first, checking the hall way to see if there were any guards patrolling. When I saw none, I waved at the others to continue. We crossed the room that led to the main gates over to where Anora was at.

"Erlina, try the door. It should be able to open." Eren said. She nodded and opened it. Anora came out, garbed in full heavy armor and helmet. Eren let out a low whistle and Morrigan pinched him for it.

"My thanks, Warden."

"I would ask but that would only delay us. Come, Queen Anora." Eren said.

"Thank you. Please lead us safely out." I scoffed. I knew what was able to happen. We got out of the room and retraced our steps. That's when I saw Ser Cauthrien at the doors with 10 fully armed guards next to her.

"Wardens! In the name of the regent, you are under arrest for the murder of Arl Rendon Howe and his men at arms. Surrender and you will be shown mercy."

"We-" Alistair began before I elbowed him in the gut. I looked at Eren, hoping he wouldn't say anything. Eren sighed. He took out his sword and shield. He laid them one the floor before him and knelt down. "Eren!"

"Don't Alistair. We don't stand a chance right now. We surrender Ser Cauthrien." Alistair bit his lip before doing the same as them.

"Alistair and I were the ones that did the murders. The others that came did not come of their own volition."

"Eren…" Leliana started but he shook his head.

"It doesn't matter, Loghain only wants you two. Pity that the other two aren't here but in the Alienage." Ser Cauthrien said. Good, Derek and Talen got themselves out of trouble with Loghain. The guards took and handcuffed both Eren and Alistair. Eren was silent and calm about it all. Alistair's face was extremely red from anger. Anora led us out of the main gates and she took off her armor as soon as we got out.

"This blasted armor weighs too much. Come, we must let Eamon know about what happened."

"You mean how you left those two to get captured while you can quietly waltz out with your freedom?" Morrigan said.

"Morrigan, don't. She's right. Let's go." I said and Morrigan gave me an icy glare that I sent back. It was a tense jog/walk back to Eamon's. We go into the estate that was oddly silent. Derek and Talen must have taken the others to deal with the Alienage.

"Eamon, we must do something and we must do it quickly!" Anora said, running into the office.

"Maker, protect our friends from danger…" Leliana prayed.

"Anora? Calm down and tell me what happened."

"She allowed our two Grey Wardens to be capture, that is what happened."

"What how did this happen?"

"Never mind that. Our priority now is to free him."

"You mean them." I said.

"We need Alistair as well Anora."

"Of course I meant them."

"I know where they are. The Grey Warden Eren is in possession of a ring that allows me to locate him where ever he may be. The only problem is how to get to him."

"Where are they then?" Anora asked.

"Show me a map if you please." Morrigan said. Eamon pulled one out and unfurled it on the table.

"There."

"Fort Drakon." I said.

"This does not bode well. Fort Drakon is a fortress with numerous amount of defenses and guards. It will require a fine hand to get in and an even finer one to get out." Leliana and I looked at each other.

"Who has stayed Eamon? I heard that Derek and Talen went into the Alienage and they couldn't have taken everyone."

"Please mi niña, do not think that I have abandoned you." Zevran said, walking into our group. "I have been waiting for you but from your faces I presume that our favorite Grey Wardens are in some trouble, no?"

"They have been capture and are now in the heart of one of Denerim's impenetrable fortresses." Leliana said.

"We will need a plan and a quick one at that." Leliana, Zevran, and I all got together.

"We are all the companions that have the most finesse, what say you Leliana?"

"We need to find a way inside."

"How about we disguise ourselves as a troupe? A circus?" I said. Leliana gave it some thought.

"Yes…that might work. A show for the recruits."

"Hmm but what will be our roles then?"

"Zevran, you can be our knife thrower and Leliana can be the lute player."

"And what is your role mi niña?"

"That I don't know."

"Oh I have a suggestion…" Leliana whispered into my ear and I got red.

"No, no, no, no!"

"It won't be perfect without a-" I heard a bark right behind me and Alfred sauntered to our group.

"With the dog it would be a perfect group." Zevran said. Alfred tilted his head in confusion.

"Leliana…" I whined.

"No buts. You do want to rescue them, don't you?"

"Then you have a plan?" Eamon asked.

"We do Arl Eamon."

"Then let us make haste. We must get them out of there as soon as possible."

"I can only think as to how you will." Morrigan smirked.

"Good. Come now, we need to get you ready." Leliana giggled and she led me to her room. We go in and closed the door on Zevran. "I'm sorry but we'll need you to stay out there." Leliana giggled again as she took out clothes from her chest.

"When do you even get time to get this stuff?"

"A woman is not a woman without her secrets. Come, take off the armor and have a quick bath. This won't work unless you are at your peak." I groaned and did as she told. I wanted to stay in the bath for longer but I had to get out. As soon as I got dry, Leliana dragged me out and showered me with a light perfume. She gave me a long almost sheer red skirt with gold embroidering. My shirt was long sleeved with intricate pictures and my belly showing and cleavage for everyone to see. She pushed mine up with bits of cloth.

"Why am I doing this again?"

"We must save our friends now shouldn't we?" She grabbed my hair and pulled it tight, making me look more Asian than I already did. She put a small crown with dangling jewelry on my head. "Don't worry this is only made to look like gold." She placed me in front of the mirror and she went ahead and took off her armor. She wore an adventuring outfit complete with a hat and feather. She grabbed the lute from behind her and strummed a few notes. I fidgeted in nervousness and she opened the door. "Come in." Zevran did with Alfred. Zevran showed a surprised look before coughing into his hand. Alfred jumped all around me before Leliana made him stop.

"Zevran you can keep your armor that will make it more believable. Introducing, Nia the dancer!" Leliana said, strumming and upbeat tone. I heard Morrigan chuckling as she came in.

"Well, this is…I do not even have the words to describe your plan." Morrigan chuckled some more. I felt my face grow red.

"This isn't going to work, I can't do this!" I said, waving my hands in front of my belly and boobs.

"Nonsense, you must do this. Now wear this until we get to the fortress." Leliana said, covering me in a big cloak. "Once we get to the guards, we shall show them our main attraction." She winked at me and I groaned.

"Me and my big mouth." I mumbled.

"Let us be off and swiftly." Leliana said, dragging me out into the market place. Zevran had the right of mind to grab onto my daggers. He was a knife thrower and more knifes wouldn't look too off place. We followed the main road. Fort Drakon was on the edge of the city. Leliana was singing and playing her lute while I was behind her in a large cloak and a hood over my head. Zevran was twirling his knives around and Alfred was barking all around us. We got more than a few stares. I felt really self conscious.

"Nia you must be more open. They will not accept our group unless you make it believable."

"Leliana you know how I feel about showing anything about my body."

"I do not see why you are so uncomfortable mi niña. You have a beautiful body that is to be envied."

"Unfortunately my self-esteem doesn't agree with you…"

"Well Zevran should change that."

"What?" Leliana laughed at me. I groaned. I felt naked. I didn't have my armor or my knives and was showing more than I felt comfortable with. Alfred was running all over the place. "So how are we going to get in, in the first place?"

"We show that we are a group hired to entertain the soldiers. Once inside, I am sure we will think of something yes?"

"…So what you're saying is we're going to wing it? Oh God, we're all going to die."

"Oh where is your optimism? We shall prevail."

"Do not worry mi niña, I shall be right at your side in case something happens."

"I know but-"

"No more buts Nia, we are right here." Leliana said, strumming her lute. I gulped. Fort Drakon was huge, looming, and evil looking. I took a deep breath as we walked toward the bridge leading to the Fort. The view of the city from here was amazing but I couldn't dwell on it. We opened the main door and stood in the foyer leading into the fortress. We walked closer and closer to the guards that were there.

"Halt. Why are you here?" One of the guards said. Leliana twirled around, Alfred going along with her. Zevran showcasing his knife skill. I saw Leliana gave a small shake of her head. It wasn't my time yet.

"We are a small troupe, hired in order to entertain the soldiers. My name is Lisa the lute player, this is my faithful hound. Kyle our knife thrower and the most beautiful desert rose in all existence." She made her performance entrancing and did a fast pace song. She gave me one glance and that was all I needed. I threw off my robe and did a slight twirl, the crown jingling on top of my head and my skirt flowing with the wind. The guards took one look at me before one cleared his throat.

"We didn't get news of a troupe, coming in for the soldiers. We will need to call in the captain."

"Of course." Leliana said. The two went away and I fidgeted.

"Now what?" I stressed.

"Do not worry mi preciosa, I will handle this." The captain came and took one look at me.

"What is this?"

"Well we are a troupe that was hired for your soldiers but I do have another delivery in mind that I have not been payed for."

"What delivery?"

"A very personal one that I could not talk to you all about." Zevran said, pushing me with his hand toward the captain.

"What do you-no never mind, I don't even want to know. Go ahead about your business then."

"Thank you." Leliana bowed and tipped her hat. Zevran gave him a slight nod. I continued with my sashay and the captain gave me a slight tap on my bottom before closing the door. My face flushed with anger. I wanted to punch his face. I went to Leliana and she covered me with my cloak.

"I'm going to kill you Leliana." She gave me a small wink and giggle. She abandoned her hat and lute near one of the empty rooms. Zevran passed her a few of his daggers. I held out my hands to get my own but Zevran shook his head.

"I do not think you are well equipped for your daggers yet mi niña." Alfred boofed and I growled.

"Let us continue." Leliana said. We went into the room with all the ballistas and I grew cold with nervousness.

"Let's not get killed here." I whispered. We saw the captain at the end of the door.

"This is going to be tricky." Leliana wondered. Zevran grabbed both of us toward one of the corners that weren't well lit. Alfred ran toward the guard at the door and ran around.

"How did you-" Then Alfred did some dry heaves before running off. "Hey wait! Stop that mabari!" She ran off and we all went past the door. We closed the door and was about to open the next one. I wanted to ask Zevran for my daggers until the door opened and closed. I recognized Eren and Alistair with two others.

"Wait who are-?" The hall way doors were both closed. Eren and Alistair grabbed the other two guards and got them in a headlock. Both clawed at Eren and Alistair but they soon ran out of breath.

"Oh I am glad to see you." Alistair whispered.

"What are you wearing Nia?"

"Not the time Eren. How the hell are we going to get out of here now?" Leliana looked at the guards.

"Take off their armor now!" She whispered harshly. Leliana and I both put on the armor and the helmets to conceal ourselves. It was uncomfortable wearing armor that wasn't suited to me. Even more so with no padding for protection. Zevran melded with the shadows and gave me a quick kiss on the cheek.

"I shall see you soon mi amor."

"Are you ready?" Eren asked. I shimmied in my armor and nodded. We opened the door and there was still chaos as Alfred ran around avoiding all the guards that tried grabbing him. We ran along with the chaos and out the door where we came in. Alfred and Zevran running after us. The guards looked at all of us with a questioning glance as well all clamored out of there. We kept on running and running until all of us were winded. By this point we were well away from Fort Drakon.

"Holy shit! I think I lost a couple of years back there." I panted.

"How did you all even know where we were?" Alistair asked.

"That you'll have to ask Morrigan. She gave you a ring right Eren?" Eren shuffled sheepishly.

"Yes. Let's go. I don't even want to see that tower anymore."

"What about everything else? You got your weapons?" I asked.

"Yes we have those though we might need some armor." Alistair said. Alfred barked all around Eren and he gave him a good pat.

"Good boy."

"What about us mi amigo? We infiltrated to the best of our ability."

"You'll get your reward later Zevran. Right now we need to get to Eamon."

"It is getting late. Denerim is harsh during the night." Leliana said.

"I hope Derek and the others are ok." I said.

"What happened to them?" Alistair wondered.

"We'll explain once we're safe. Zevran, give me my daggers. I don't feel comfortable without them."

"Of course mi niña." Ah daggers, I love my daggers. We eventually made our way to the Estate and it got dark. I panted heavily and threw off the armor as soon as I got the chance.

"Will you tell me now why are you dressed like that?" Eren asked.

"We did a troupe thing to get in. Leliana made me the dancer."

"Doesn't it look marvelous?" Leliana said, coming up behind me.

"Leliana…" I stressed.

"You look good. Now let's get to Eamon." Eren said, nodding at Alistair. They both went upstairs and I was about to go into my room but I heard the door slam behind me.

"I can't believe Loghain! I swear I'm going to kill him!" Talen shouted.

"Talen!" Leliana launched herself at him. He seemed a bit worse for wear as well as Oghren, Sten, Wynne, Shale, and Jowan trailing behind him. Derek came in last and rubbed his face.

"Jesus, it looks like you went through hell." I said.

"Something close to it missy. Is Eamon still up?"

"He should be. What happened?" Leliana asked.

"I'll tell you all later. Right now, we need to go see him." Talen said. Derek followed him up and everyone looked wrecked.

"What are you wearing?" Sten asked.

"Ugh, It's a long story."

"We had to break Eren and Alistair out of prison." Leliana said.

"And we disguised ourselves."

"Leliana got a bit happy with the disguising part on me."

"How are you even able to wear that? It's shameful!" Wynne said.

"Not to mention not at all practical. Where is your protection?" Shale said.

"I know! I'm going to go change." Leliana and the others went into the dining hall and I went to my room. I took off the dreaded clothes and put on my own things that were more comfortable. Ah black long sleeved and pants with my boots. Awesome. Anyway Eren and the others are already talking to Eamon. I can hear them through my room. I'm going to need to persuade Eren to talk to Anora about the Alistair thing and what we can say during the Landsmeet. Before that I have a ring to deliver. Hopefully Alfstanna is still at the tavern. Wish me luck.

* * *

**Where does Leliana find the time to get all those clothes? lol And Howe is dead, good. I have finished the awakening part and I'm now in DA2! :D**

**Shout out to llat-2, jko90909, White Story, paul. , and SacredSamurai for favoriting/following!**

**Buggy300: **_Someone did notice her mentioning it, who was it, I won't tell. I love Cole by the way, he's so cute! Yes Nia does know but her abilities are more centered on her so no on the reverse of_ _Tranquility_.  
**ThelonewolfNT: **_Huh, that's the first time I saw someone root for AlistairxNia but nope, not them.  
_**EG: **_I have never watched Buffy so the fanfic would be lost on me, sorry, but thank you! We'll see how things progress between Zevran and Nia...  
_**Dforce76: **_Nia did punch Howe, I hoped you liked that part :3  
_**White Story: **_I wished you could have done more instead of that small cutscene you had in DA:O. I know, I had the same thing happen to me when playing. And yes, every three days until the end which is not long now!  
_**Shattered Soul 2021: **_Nope no torture, except for embarrassment for Nia! Muahaha! And I just want you to know, Nia will never be a mage. I can't explain that now unfortunately, no spoilers! Yes Shale has joined the team! Late, but still joined!_

**Please Review :3**


	55. Secrets Revealed

9:31 Guardian 6th

Holy Jesus where to begin?

After the whole 'Save the Wardens' thing I went out to the marketplace. It was lit by many torches and the merchants were locking away everything for the night. It felt weird to be around someplace like this during the night. I grew accustomed to the wildlife at night. The guards were doing their patrols and I found the tavern. I opened it and all the nobles were there. I saw Alfstanna with the other noble. Her guard was yawing. I went toward her.

"May I help you?"

"Someone asked me to give you this." I said, giving the ring that her brother gave me. She looked at it before she realized who it belonged to.

"This is…my brother Irminrics's ring. Where did you get this? My brother would not part with this so willingly."

"Your brother needs your help Bann Alfstanna."

"Then he is alive. Please tell me if you have news of my brother."

"He's in the dungeon of the Arl of Denerim."

"The dungeon of-No I can't stay here. I must go him at once. Someone will pay for this. Thank you. You are a companion of Eren Cousland are you not? Tell him if he needs any of my bowman to take back his Teyrnir he will have them." She got up and ran toward the door. I saw Oswyn's father but he wouldn't recognize me. I had to make sure to ask Eren to talk to him once the next day. Right now I'm tired from all the pandemonium that we had to go through with Anora, Howe, and Fort Drakon. I came out of the tavern and made my way toward Eamon's. I closed the door and yawned. All I wanted to do was sleep.

"There you are. Mind telling all of us what happened today?" Jowan asked.

"I thought Leliana already told you all."

"But you haven't heard their side. Come sit down and we can eat." Leliana said, appearing right behind him and leading me into the dining room.

"But I'm tired." I whined.

"Just sit down. We have a lot to talk about." Talen said. Everyone was there, minus Alistair and Eren. I noticed the tension in the room and sat down.

"So, we saved Anora." Talen said.

"Yeah, what happened in the Alienage?" I asked. Talen scowled and Derek sighed.

"Loghain was selling the elves to the Tevinter Imperium as slaves." Wynne said.

"The mages they enlisted were holding the squishy elves in cages." Shale said.

"After the riots they came up with the plague idea. No one even knew that it was happening right under their noses." Talen said, stabbing a piece of steak with his fork.

"We freed them! Why do you got to be so bloody hurt about it?" Oghren belched.

"Because they took away most of the elves already." Talen mumbled.

"There was nothing we could have done. We killed the slaver and we got the documents to prove in the Landsmeet that Loghain was selling them. We did all we could." Jowan said.

"They still sold them and they killed off all of those elven children! The bastards from the Tevinter slaughtered everyone in the orphanage!" Talen shouted, rising from his seat. Sten's hand went to his sword and Talen gritted his teeth.

"That is the regularity of a blood mage. You must understand that no one knows of blood magic as you." Morrigan said.

"If we only got there in time…" Talen growled and went out of the room. Leliana gave me a worried glance before following him out. There was a solemn mood around the room.

"The fire mage is too sensitive for his own good." Shale said.

"He is a regularly bleeding heart no?" Zevran said.

"His compassion is his greatest strength and weakness." Wynne said.

"I don't blame him for it." I said.

"And what are we to do now? Surely we have all we the information to stand against Loghain, no?"

"Now that we have Anora, she's going to want to stay on the throne." I said.

"That you are right about." Eren said, walking in with Alistair behind him. "Derek, how was the Alienage?"

"Pitiful but we got some more information against Loghain."

"Good. Eamon will be calling the Landsmeet in two days. We have until then to gather all the information at hand to stop Loghain."

"Eren was talking to Anora and we agreed that she would stay on the throne." Alistair said, sitting down as well as Eren.

"Then what happens to you Alistair?" Wynne wondered. Alistair groaned.

"He wants me to…to…"

"Marry Anora?" I said.

"It's the best of both worlds." Eren shrugged.

"But I don't even love her!"

"Marriage doesn't always signify love mi amigo."

"But she's just using me! The blood of a Maric and herself, how is that good?"

"Denerim needs a strong leader but they will also not allow someone that doesn't have Maric's blood continue. We must have you do this Alistair, for Ferelden." Alistair groaned again.

"Why not have Eren do it then?" Everyone gave me incredulous looks. "What? The Couslands have been around longer than the Theirin's and they're the family that almost became the royal family anyway after the war with Orlais. Not to mention that your family was always extremely popular with the families of the Bannorn. If Alistair doesn't want to be king, I think the people of Ferelden wouldn't mind a Cousland on the throne."

"You are…very well read."

"I had a lot of free time back in the day Eren."

"So what do you say Eren? Why don't you marry Anora and become king? I could just be some nobody Grey Warden and everyone wins!"

"It won't be that easy. For now, I will speak to Anora about what we can share at the Landsmeet in order to appeal to everyone."

"Don't forget about the noble's son that we saved from Howe. If we can get his father to side with us, then that's another ally to our ranks against Loghain."

"Of course. For now, everyone to your rooms. It has been a long day for all of us." Eren said. I stood up to go to my room. There was one thing on my mind though. I went through the hallway and into Eamon's study. He wasn't there for now. I looked to the next room and Riordan was there.

"Hello friend. You are one of the Grey Warden companions yes?"

"Yeah, my name is Nia nice to meet you. It's weird seeing another Grey Warden after just traveling with the only four left in Ferelden."

"It is true. Ferelden has a dire need for Grey Wardens. It is here where our forces are the weakest unlike in the Anderfels where they are a thousand strong."

"That's a lot of Grey Wardens. Um, I came here to ask you about the vault that you talked to about Eren."

"Yes it is in the marketplace in the warehouse. There is a secret compartment that holds a few items for Grey Wardens."

"Is there…anything of Duncan's there?"

"May I ask why?"

"Alistair…was close to Duncan. He always wanted something to remember him by but all we got were his daggers from Ostagar and that's at Soldier's Peak right now. If there's anything else that Alistair can have, I would really want him to have it."

"Is Alistair special to you?"

"Oh not that way. Alistair is like family to me. He recently went through a bad break with his half-sister and I was wondering if I could get something that would make him happier. Especially with all this pushing him on the throne thing going on." Riordan chuckled at that.

"I have already given Eren the code that opens the door but you may look through it as well."

"Thank you." Riordan gave me a slip of paper that held the code.

"They are very lucky to have a loyal friend such as yourself." I shrugged sheepishly.

"I try. Thank you Riordan." I went out and found my room. I sighed and went into my bed to sleep. It was a restless sleep.

I woke up early the next morning, tired but ready for the day. The slip of paper was right next to me in the stand that held my journal. It was almost full again. I was writing in it so much. I'll have to get another copy again soon. I took a quick bath and grabbed a piece of bread with butter for my breakfast. I went out and there was a light fog over Denerim. The merchants were setting up their stalls now. I went past the tavern and Genetivi's place where I saw the warehouse. I went in and checked where I last stashed my phone. It was still there and it didn't turn on either. I debated bringing it back with me and I went ahead and put it in my pocket. I went to the far end of the warehouse and saw the hidden door. I moved the dresser and put the code in. The door opened.

There were various boxes filled with equipment, racks with swords, shields, maces, and various weapons. I was only here to look for one thing though and that was Duncan's shield. I looked around and most of the shields didn't have any type of insignia on it. Then after rummaging around an armor stand, I saw it. It had the Grey Warden symbol on it. It looked used but well taken care of. I wiped off the dust that gathered on it and knew that this was Duncan's shield. I nodded to myself and went out. The fog was dispersing by the time I made it to Eamon's estate. The Landsmeet was scheduled for tomorrow. My anxiety was on my heels but I paid no mind to it. I went through the door and into my room. It didn't look like anyone was awake.

I really didn't want to be awake at this hour with no one awake. I put the shield down on my bed and headed toward the library that Eamon had. It didn't have much of anything besides various histories and such.

"You're awake?" I saw Alistair come down, yawning.

"I woke up early to do something. No one else is awake besides the servants doing everything for the day."

"I couldn't get much sleep either. The Landsmeet is tomorrow and everyone is expecting me to be a king. It's unnerving to say the least."

"You'd be a good king Alistair. I know that. You're a good man."

"But it…I don't want to be king. I have always found myself a Grey Warden first and anything second. Being a king? I don't know how to be a king in the first place. When you mentioned that Eren can also be king it…made me relieved. No one saw that there was another choice besides me but I don't know if Eren would do it as well."

"Being King? Eren would do good as well but that's up to him. Hey, wait here. I have something for you."

"For me? It's not even my name-day yet."

"Just stay here." I went up to my room and got the shield. I came down and he was sitting down on the desk that was there. "Here."

"This…I recognize this. This is Duncan's shield, that's his crest…"

"You wanted something to remember him by right? I found this in the Grey Warden vault that we have here in Denerim."

"I…I have no words…Thank you. Truly. I didn't even realize that he wasn't carrying his shield at Ostagar. No wonder we only found his daggers. I…have no gratitude, I don't even know how to tell you or show you my thanks. How did you even know?"

"Eh, Eren tells me things and I overhear things of course. I'm glad this makes you happy."

"You have no idea. It just makes me think, you are always doing things for everyone but no one really does anything for you."

"Ah don't worry about it Alistair. I like helping people and I like making people happy."

"But if there's something I can do…"

"Stay the same Alistair. I would hate that you would lose that good side to you."

"Oh I have a good side? Which side is it the left or the right?" I chuckled and shoved him playfully. "Thank you Nia. If you ever need anyone to help you with anything, I'll be there for you."

"Thanks Alistair. Now let's get some breakfast." We went into the dining room where the cook got us a few eggs and some slices of bread. I saw Erlina grab a plate, that meant that Anora was awake then.

"Ah the future king of Ferelden and my favorite woman. Good morning to you both."

"Morning Zevran." He took a place next to me.

"How did you sleep mi niña?"

"So, so. The anxiety for the Landsmeet is starting to come. It's tomorrow and I don't know what to expect."

"Not only that but Darkspawn are coming up all over the place." Derek said, coming up next to Alistair.

"What?"

"It's true. From what the Bannorn have been talking about in the tavern, there are Darkspawn cropping up all over the place now. The guardsmen from Redcliffe and various allies have been keeping the roads clear but more and more are starting to attack." Alistair explained.

"Everyone knows that this is a Blight. We need to get our asses in check or else we'll have no country to speak of."

"You don't know that Derek. We'll band together, just you wait."

"What are you ready to be king Alistair?" He went quiet after Derek mentioned that. "That's what I thought."

"Come one Derek, let's try not to fight with everyone. We need everyone's support on this."

"You're right missy. Now time for some chow!"

"I already ate breakfast so I'm going to my room." I ruffled Alistair's hair going up to my room. I took out my phone from the dresser and stared at it. Was it so long ago that I came here from home? Three years was a long time. I didn't even know how long I was going to wait until I finally went home. After all of this madness with the blight, what's next? Kirkwall, the mage-Templar war, the Inquisition. Now that was a long time off and I'm not even sure I was going to get to that point. I laid down my phone on my bed. I got down on my knees and prayed. I haven't prayed for such a long time but I prayed for many things. Protection, to make sure that everyone survived and that we'll get through this. Patience, so that I would be able to wait however long it will take to get me home and unwavering faith to get me through the day. I took out the small token that Zevran gave me. It made me glad that he looked out for me as well.

I had my eyes close during this time and didn't even notice that someone was behind me. It wasn't until they moved that I heard them. I got up, my knees cracking and saw Zevran there.

"Hey. I thought you stayed for breakfast."

"Hmph, I have already eaten. You have been praying for some time, no?"

"Oh you saw? Yeah." I sat down on my bed. "I was just doing it so that we'll be able to make it out you know? The Blight…sometimes I'm not sure if we're going to get through it. Who knows how many darkspawn we'll be fighting and if everyone is going to live."

"Do not doubt like this Nia. We will all surely live." Zevran said, kneeling and placing his hands on my knees.

"Really? Don't you usually say that our faces are going to decorate some Darkspawn's shield? Or that we'll be rotting in the Deep Roads after they drag us all there."

"What can I say? Your optimism must have infected me mi amor."

"…You keep saying that, why?" Zevran took my hand and kissed it.

"It is…how I feel…"

"You already know my answer."

"But it does not stop what I feel for you."

"You really are a charmer aren't you?" I said, pinching his cheek. "Zevran, thank you for everything that you've done for me. I know that…after all of this you probably won't be staying any longer considering your oath to Eren and the Grey Wardens."

"Do you really think that it is my oath that keeps me here?" I shook my head.

"No, not really." He sat by me and I laid my head on his shoulder. "We are all going our separate ways soon, aren't we?"

"We have only banded together to face the blight. Once that is over, we cannot continue mi amor."

"Makes me wonder what life has in store for us."

"Something wonderful I believe." Zevran kissed the top of my head. It felt nice to be needed and loved but I knew I was using Zevran for this. He probably knew it as well. "Nia, before our battle with the Archdemon there is something I would like to give to you." He rummaged through his pack and pulled out a simple gold earring. "This is something…that I have contemplated giving to you. I believe that this is an appropriate time. Whether or not you'll accept it due to the nature of my feelings is your choice."

"Zevran, I can honestly say that I haven't met anyone like you and I'm glad to have met you. You'll be alright with me accepting this even though I don't feel the same?"

"Of course. It is a token from me to you. How you want to interpret is your own decision."

"Thank you but you know I don't know how to do piercings."

"Then you…?"

"I accept your feelings Zevran but you know I can't return them."

"That is what I had hoped for mi amor. Would you like me to place it?"

"Go ahead." Zevran pushed away my hair to reveal my right ear. He pinched the upper part of my ear hard. It hurt but he soon had the needle in his hand. Zevran pushed it through like nothing. I winced at the pain. Zevran rubbed the part slightly and wiped off the blood. I heard the small click of the earring in place. "Ow, that hurt more than I thought it would."

"I'm sorry mi niña."

"Hm, it's ok. Well since you showed me that, I can at least show you this." I got my phone and had him look at it.

"What is this strange contraption?"

"It's something we all have back in my home. It's called a phone but it could do so much. You can write in it, talk to people in it, look up information or, um, mini portraits."

"How is this all possible?"

"That I can't really say but I will say it took more than hundred years to get to this point. Unfortunately I can't access anything on it. It needs electricity to power on. Maybe I'll get Talen to look at it eventually."

"He is still suffering from what happened to the elves."

"Yeah but Leliana will get him out of it."

"How odd that those two are together."

"Yep. Come on, we can't stay in my room all day."

"We can but unfortunately you do not take my offer."

"No way Zevran." He laughed. We went to the library again and Jowan was there. "Hey Jowan."

"Oh, oh!" Jowan leapt from his seat when he saw Zevran. I looked between them and Zevran chuckled. "Well, um, I didn't see both of you."

"Ok what the hell happened between you besides you guys doing it?"

"You know!?" Jowan said, his voice getting higher and his face red.

"Wow, that good huh?" Jowan groaned and Zevran chuckled again.

"It seems I am not wanted here. We shall speak later mi niña." I sat down on the desk until Zevran left so it was only Jowan and I.

"Sooo…nice day isn't it?"

"You want to ask about it don't you?"

"Not unless you're uncomfortable about it."

"I was drunk and lonely."

"Eh people have slept with others for less."

"He has tattoos down there…"

"Interesting."

"Why are you being so nonchalant about this?"

"It's Zevran Jowan, he wants to sleep with everyone."

"You don't really believe that do you?" I gave him a flat look. "Of course you would believe that."

"It's none of my business to say anything about it you know. Zevran has propositioned everybody minus Sten and Oghren."

"I have never thought that I would even…gah!" I chuckled.

"So besides that little news, how have you been?"

"Well besides me only being able to stay in the servant quarters, not bad. Wynne and Morrigan are still trying to teach me and I surprised Wynne when we were in the Alienage."

"How?"

"The slaver recommended blood magic to save his life. He said that he would augment Talen's abilities. Wynne was vehemently against it and looked at me when the slaver said it. I opposed it too. Then when we were in the orphanage trying to figure out what happened and the demon came out, I saved the Templar Otto by manipulating the demon. She said that my abilities count for something."

"Otto?"

"Yes. He was the Templar that came when he felt the demons in the orphanage. He almost died when the rage demon hurled a greatsword at him but I was able to speak to the demon for a second, causing it to miss."

"You were able to speak to it?"

"Blood mages are more susceptible to demons. They can worm into our thoughts easier than most. I let my barrier down for a second and it nearly possessed me. It was…tricky but I was able to wield the demon's thoughts for a second."

"Wow, that seems useful."

"It's not something I would recommend to anyone though."

"…Does that mean that when you travel the fade the demons are always there harassing you?"

"Many try to get into me. They…offer me a lot of things. Revenge against my enemies, my most deepest desires, the ability to make me stronger but…I always have one thing on my mind when they come to me; what would Talen think? So far it keeps me able to turn down their offers. Talen saved me and if I managed to get possessed just because I was strong enough? He would hate me and that scares me more than anything else. He's my best friend and I'm not going to let him down, not again." I stared at the tenacious Jowan before me and I felt a surge of pride for Talen.

"You know, you're a good guy Jowan. I'm glad you're on our side."

"Thank you." I heard Alfred bark as he came in with us and he settled his head on my lap.

"Hey Alfred, who's a good boy? Who's a good boy?" I cooed. Alfred did his doggy smile as I rubbed his face.

"There you are." Eren said coming through. He nodded at Jowan. "How are you?"

"I'm feeling pretty good. Anxious, but good."

"Come with me Nia." Eren said solemnly. I took a look to Jowan and he shrugged. I followed Eren to his room where Anora was.

"I'm guessing you didn't call me here for a social event?"

"Eren has told me of your…various visions that were most likely true." I looked at Eren but he was staring straight ahead. Here I thought he was brushing off my various cryptic advice away. I felt my stomach drop slightly. I didn't like my secrets being known but I did say I could see the future. It was a half truth more or less. It still surprised me though. Eren believed me. "I would like your opinion as to how we would win the Landsmeet."

"You're asking me? You're the Queen and Eren has a good foothold on politics. I'm a fighter."

"And yet there were places of clarity that you have had on your journey that Eren has made me aware of. Tell me, how do you propose on winning the Landsmeet?" I glared at Eren but he wasn't meeting my gaze.

"So you're relying on me and my 'visions' then? Wait does this mean you're going to push for us in the Landsmeet?"

"Yes. Eren has agreed to let me keep my throne. No doubt that Alistair is relieved in hearing of it."

"So you'll get to stay on the throne…who's going to be king then?"

"I am already Queen and that is enough. That is not why I brought you here. Is there anything that you have seen that might help us?"

"All right then. I'm surprised that you came to me for this but hey, anything to win right? Loghain is going to try to persuade everyone that Orlais is the enemy here. You have to make sure that the blight is the real threat. Then he's going to try to make them think that they are again when he brings up the topic of the chevaliers. We have proof that Queen Celene was going to aid us. Bring up Howe and what he did to the nobles. I talked to Alfstanna already. I can only assume that Eren has already talked to Oswyn's father. The Chantry won't like how Loghain took a Templar from his duties. He's going to try to blame Howe for his own deeds. You can turn the fact that he tried to poison Eamon then. With that most of the nobles will come to our sides. I have no doubt that a duel would be the best way to settle the course." Anora looked thoughtful at all of this.

"Just one question before I decide to let you go; how do you know all of this?"

"You wouldn't believe me even if I told you the truth."

"Well?" I debated with myself on telling her how everything was a game at one point, click and choose, click and fight, click and say.

"I was brought here by a fade spirit. That same spirit gives me visions of the future. It's how I knew about Howe's massacre. It's not entirely accurate though. There are times when it…fails me." It was a partial lie. Anora gave me a look. She tried to see any sort of physical signs of a lie. I met her gaze, I was relaxed, and my breathing wasn't interrupted. She looked away.

"I see. I suppose the future is only what we make of it. That is all for now. You may rest before the Landsmeet. I am sure that Eren here will most likely bring you to it. Thank you for telling us this." I gave another look to Eren but he was biting his lip and looking at the ground. There was something that he was planning but I couldn't fathom what it was then.

"Thank you, my lady." I bowed and went out the door. She closed it as soon as I walked out. I let out a big breath. Anora was intimidating to say the least. I walked out and needed some fresh air. Alfred was waiting by my room. "Hey Alfred, wanna go out?" He barked. I was about to go out when I saw Morrigan trail behind me.

"I see that our favorite Warden is talking to the Queen."

"Worried that she might steal him away?"

"Steal him? He was never mine to begin with but that is not why I approached you. I know your secret."

"Wow because I have so many." I rolled my eyes.

"Your secret of information I mean. Do not think that Flemeth didn't sense you when you first came." I gave her a glance and looked out to the main hall. No one was there at the moment.

"We can't stay here." I opened the main door and she followed me out. We walked along the marketplace before settling into a small alleyway. Alfred went off to play with a few of the kids running around. "So, what do you want to know?" Morrigan gave a low chuckle.

"I do not want to know anything."

"Then why did you mention that?"

"Flemeth told me of an irregularity that came to our world. A great quake in the fade is what she called it. Something had come. Something that was amiss, something that could not exist and yet is existing. She did not know how and only inquired as to why. When she met you I understood that you were that irregularity. A person who was not supposed to exist in our world. She knew that you held information about this world, a substantial amount of information. Yet as we continued in our journey, you have not made any sort of changes besides saving Eren and his nephew, why is that?"

"Because if I change too much then things won't be the same after a while. I'm riding on the fact that if I follow the story to the t, then I'll be able to help here and there. I'll only help when I can."

"Is that so?"

"Well if there's a way to stop things from happening, I might take that route. If I need to sacrifice what I know is going to happen for a future where I don't to achieve peace? I'd do it." Morrigan was going to saunter her way out but I couldn't stop what I said.

"I know what you are planning Morrigan." Morrigan gave me a sly smile.

"And what, pray tell, is that?"

"On the evening of the battle with the Archdemon, you're going to approach Eren about a ritual. The ritual that can save everyone and make a child, an old god child." Morrigan gave me that icy glare.

"And are you planning to stop me?" I shook my head.

"No, I'm not. I want you to go through with it." Morrigan's eyes widened slightly. "At first, I was…hesitant about the ritual but after going through everything with Derek, Talen, Alistair, and Eren, I realized that I don't want any of them to die."

"So you will allow this?"

"Yeah because I know it's going to hurt you too. You love Eren."

"Hmph! I do not-"

"Don't try to lie to me Morrigan. I know that look very well. Eren loves you too." Morrigan scowled at me.

"How much do you know?"

"A lot."

"You will not reveal anything are you?"

"I can't show off all my winning cards. I don't know how long I'm going to be here but I won't let this world go into ruin. I loved this world even before I came here."

"It will be a long time before your spirit friend will be able to send you home."

"I have a feeling when he'll be able to send me home but at this point it's only a feeling." Morrigan gave me a look.

"Why are you telling me all of this?"

"Because you play a part, a part that you'll find out through your mother's grimoire no doubt."

"And if my mother comes to you for your help? Which no doubt she will." That made me think about the small marble that Flemeth gave to me.

"Then I'll help her or I could be a double agent for you and try to sabotage whatever she has planned from the inside." Morrigan chuckled at that.

"I like this change in you. You have grown cunning over our journey."

"What doesn't kill you makes you stronger." Morrigan chuckled at that as well. "Still even with all I know, I know that things won't go the way I planned. No matter what though, I will see this until the end."

"Of that I am certain of. Come now, it is getting late. We will need to be at our best tomorrow for the Landsmeet."

"That's something I'm not looking forward to."

* * *

**Flemeth knows! I wonder how that is going to play out in the future...**

**Shout out to Ursine Ronin, Holliden, Chaos Evans, Mr. Wobbly, Cass-The-Nerd, and Chimera Spyke for favoriting/following!**

**Buggy300: **_Oghren as a dancer? That image is burned into my mind now...I'm glad you enjoyed the hilarity_  
**_GamerGeekGirl:_ **_Cullen is a cutey pie huh? I have a thing for shy guys too but we'll see on the romance part in DAI once I get there.  
_**EG: **_I did watch Angel in fact since Booth from Bones is Angel. I have to admit though he aged very fine lol  
_**ThelonewolfNT: **_Like I said, there will be no Zia, this chapter reinforces that lol_  
**_Shattered_ Soul 2021:**_I always wondered about that part. What if they got out and the friends got in at the same time? Mayhem of course! Yes, poor Nia, humiliated!  
_**Dforce76: **_Funny you should say that because I'm watching the fight as it comes out lol_

**Please Review :3**


	56. The Landsmeet and Our King

9:31 Guardian 6th

Morrigan and I headed back. I had to do my only way to whistle to get Alfred back. I felt closer to Morrigan but I couldn't help but sympathize with her. She was leaving the man she loved to fulfill her destiny. Whether or not she'll accept it, only time will tell. The night was falling and that meant it was getting closer and closer to the Landsmeet. Then after the Landsmeet, the Archdemon.

I went in through the door. Morrigan had an underlying respect for me for keeping my secrets. They were good ones too. Not ones I would even write. Wynne was with Shale out in the hallway and shook her head at me when Morrigan passed by.

"Don't look at me like that Wynne. I was only taking a small walk with Morrigan."

"A walk with the swamp witch and the dog? I can only imagine the conversations." Shale said.

"It's best if you keep that to yourself." I said.

"You do know that she is planning something."

"I think everyone in the group knows." We went into the dining hall, leaving Shale behind, who complained about us needing to eat, and I saw Sten there with a plate of cookies.

"They were extra." I snorted and I tried not to laugh.

"Yeah, of course they were. Hey Sten, what would you think if I gave you a book that had the dessert recipes so you can take it to your homeland?"

"You would make one for me?"

"Yep that way you can introduce it to Par Vollen."

"That would be…nice."

"Awesome. I'll make it for you then. You have to be careful though, too much of a good thing is bad."

"We know the meaning of control."

"Of that I'm sure of. You know we're reaching the end of all of this. Once the Landsmeet ends…"

"Are you saying the Archdemon might be lying in wait?"

"I just have a feeling."

"No matter, we will defeat it. We have our allies."

"Yeah that's true."

"Shok ebasit hisra. Meraad astaarit, meraad itwasit, aban aqun. Maraas shokra. Anaan esaam Qun. Struggle is an illusion. The tide rises, the tide falls, but the sea is changeless. There is nothing to struggle against. Victory is in the Qun. We will find victory Kadan."

"Thank you Sten. I know with you at my back, nothing will make me fall."

"With my sword, I will strike at our foes. Asala, meravas."

"I'm going to miss you when you're gone Sten. Is it weird that out of all our friends, you're the one that resembles my husband the most?"

"Why is that?"

"You're both logical to the extreme but he's sillier than you. I think you guys would have liked each other."

"If you continue on your path and do not waver, you will see him again."

"Thank you Sten. Well it's getting late. We'll need to be at our best at the Landsmeet." Sten nodded and went back to his cookies. Everyone was scattered and doing their own thing when I went into my room. My gut was twisting in knots with the anxiety of tomorrow. Eren was planning something and I didn't know. Not only that I realized from my conversation with Morrigan that she and Flemeth know that I know information about this world. I'll have to keep my guard up the next time I meet with Flemeth. That night I didn't have dreams.

The next morning I got up early again. I was tossing and turning most of the night and I felt tired, very tired. I groaned as I got up. I made myself a bath and sat in it for some time. Who knows when I'll be able to relax like this again? I got out and put on my clothes and armor. Today was the Landsmeet. I came out of my room, my hands twitching near my daggers. Everyone was still asleep. I couldn't even eat because of my stomach doing flips. I paced in front of the door.

"Would the spirit stop walking in circles? It's making me dizzy."

"Sorry Shale but...today is the Landsmeet."

"As your leader expressed many a time."

"I'm not sure what can happen today. What happens today is crucial to Ferelden as a whole."

"And why must the spirit care whether or not the humans fight amongst each other?"

"Because I care for this world Shale."

"Then I pity you. Spirits are known not to involve themselves with the matter of humans. They believe it is a waste of time."

"It's not. I'm doing good here. I'm not going to abandon my friends."

"Then you are a bleeding heart no wonder you bleed the fade."

"...You have said that before. I'm bleeding the fade but...mages are the only ones that can take from the fade to do their spells."

"Mages can manipulate the fade into the physical realm causing explosion or spells that tear beings from the inside out. It is not a mage. It is a spirit. Similar to me but I have the advantage of a body that won't fail me."

"What do you mean similar to you?"

"The fade walks with it, spirit, as a small trickle comes out of it. Not like I who can manipulate the same energy with my crystals and can energize mages around me. It could have the same ability but where as I am a great fountain, it is more like drippings from a slight moist towel. It is not enough to empower others but more to itself. At least that is what I can feel. Unless a mage is attune to the fade, it will not notice it's effect. Not unless something comes direct contact of it."

"...So what you're saying is that I can connect to the fade but only empower myself?"

"It also takes. That thing residing in you takes. It takes the power from the fade and it takes from mages. It does not see like I can see, how it takes the energy from the mages. It is slight but it is there. It is preparing but for what, I do not know. Take care spirit that you do not take much from the fade for it takes back from it."

"I'll keep that in mind." I said as I saw Eamon and Anora come through toward the main door.

"Nia." Anora nodded.

"Queen Anora."

"I am surprised to see you up so early." Eamon said. He was wearing his full armor gear.

"The chirping from those wretched pigeons must have awoken it." I chuckled at that.

"I can't sleep. I'm guessing that we'll see you at the Landsmeet then?"

"Of course. I will do my part as will Eren and Alistair. We shall see you there." Eamon said. Anora and him both went out and I paced some more. Shale groaned about that but I couldn't stop. I wanted this day to end already. I felt it in my bones, the Archdemon and the blight were on our heels. I had to find some way to warn Eren and the others about the attack on Denerim. The Archdemon was not going to Redcliffe, it was going to come here. I stopped for a second, trying to figure out a plan to tell them when Talen came and startled me.

"Wah!" Talen laughed and I shoved him. "Talen you jerk!"

"And the fire mage strikes yet again."

"Shale." Talen nodded to her. "You're pretty wound up aren't you?" Talen asked and I bit my lip, my cheeks flushed in embarrassment. Talen had a serious face on. "We're going to the Landsmeet."

"I know."

"Loghain is going to be there."

"I know."

"The Archdemon is going to attack Denerim."

"I…what? How do you know that?" Talen looked at the floor.

"Avernus' potion…it makes it clearer to understand them. They're going to attack Denerim and Redcliffe at the same time." I stared at Talen in wonder that he was able to piece it together. "After the Landsmeet I'm going to tell Eamon about it so we can evacuate the city. The nobles will probably be able to get the citizens out in time to avoid a massacre."

"So the Archdemon is ready to be smashed into fleshy bits? Let it come."

"Wow, Avernus' potion does the trick huh?"

"Why do you think I drank it?" Talen crossed his arms, his face in the air, pride emanating from him.

"There you are priss! Morning Golem! Ready to get going?" Derek said, coming down in full dragon bone plate.

"Wow, nice armor you have there."

"I have warned you for calling me that dwarf."

"Up yours golem. Thank you for noticing Nia." I saw Eren and Alistair coming down, the rest of our companions coming out of the other doors.

"It's now or never. Shale, you stay here." Talen said.

"Good. I'd rather not be in a stuffy room with fleshy creatures anyway."

"Andraste preserve us."

"Andraste will not preserve any of us."

"Morrigan." Eren stressed.

"Well, there's no point in delaying the inevitable." Alistair said. I nodded. We went out of the estate. The sun was dissipating the fog that settled on the city. Alistair took a step but did an audible swallow.

"Oh Maker I don't want to do this."

"You have to Templar. You want to save Ferelden don't you?"

"Look at it this way kid, all the cheese you can eat!" Oghren said.

"That doesn't make me feel better."

"We're with you Alistair, you are not alone." Wynne said. I shoved him and he took a breath. We continued in somber silence, crossing Drakon River, into the main streets. I saw the Royal Palace looming before us. We walked passed the gardens and the guards and opened the gate into the Landsmeet hall that would bring us where the Landsmeet was starting. Then we saw Ser Cauthrien coming up to us.

"Wardens. It is a shame that it has come to this but it has not surprised me in the slightest. Alistair, if you were even the slightest bit of Maric's son, you would already be in the Landsmeet, wouldn't you? You all have torn Ferelden apart and are trying to take down the man who made sure this land had its freedom. I will not let you desecrate the Landsmeet. The nobles will see my general as regent and the civil war will be put to rest, once you all are out of the way." Talen stepped forward but Eren stopped him.

"Are you really that blind for not seeing what Loghain has become?" Eren said in a small calm voice. Cauthrien bit her lip and sighed.

"There are many times when doubt plagues my mind. Loghain was once a great man and even greater general but his hatred of Orlais has complete consumed him and driven him mad. I know he has done…terrible things. I have seen them with my own eyes but I owe him everything. Do not ask me to betray him, I won't do it."

"Then let us stop him. You know that this is the only way."

"Duty has never tasted so bitter." Cauthrien motioned with her hand and all the guards take were hidden came out. She knelt down and laid her blade next to her. "Stop him Warden. Stop him from breaking this country apart but please…show mercy." Eren nodded to her and we all came to the doors. Alistair took one last breath.

"I'm with you guys all the way." I said. The four Grey Wardens looked at me and Eren finally caught my eyes.

"I know." We opened the doors to the Landsmeet. We walked in with our heads held high, Eamon already addressing everyone.

"Lords and ladies of the Landsmeet, Teyrn Loghain has caused to forgo our freedoms and our traditions, out of fear! He placed us on this path, our civil war, our very city crumbling from the decisions of this man. Should we place our destiny in his hands and sacrifice everything that we have fought for to save our country?" The people clapped and Loghain waltzed in, clapping slowly. I saw the glare in all the Grey Warden's eyes. Sorry Cauthrien, but they will show no mercy.

"An amazing performance, Eamon but no one here is taken by it. Everyone knows here that you are attempting to put a puppet on the throne, the real question is, who shall be pulling the strings? Ah, and here we have our puppeteer." We all came in and Loghain was right in front of us. "Tell us Wardens how you would surrender our lands to the Orlesians once again! Will they send their troops through you or will they use this would be prince to send out their commands? What did they offer you? How low is your honor to accept their help?" The guards closed in on us. Eren looked at me and I stared right ahead.

"How much of a paranoid fool do you think you are? Don't you see Loghain? The Blight is the threat here, not Orlais!" Eren said.

"The refuges that are pouring into my Bannorn make that perfectly clear." Alfstanna said.

"The southern hills has been taken by those rotting monsters. How can you talk about Orlais invading us when the Blight is threatening our lands?"

"The Blight is indeed real Wullff but do we really need Grey Wardens to fight it? In Ostagar they assured us victory because they claimed that they alone can end the Blight. Yet they failed and called upon the four legions of Chevaliers! If we allowed the Chevaliers to cross our borders how can we trust them to leave and return from whence they came?"

"That's really on your mind isn't it Loghain? All you have is Orlais in your eyes when you allow a Ferelden man, Rendon Howe, to imprison and torture innocents!" Eren shouted.

"The warden speaks true! My son was taken from me in the cover of night. The horrors done on his body…some of the injuries that he sustained are beyond any healer's skill!"

"Howe was responsible for himself. I could not have known the horrors that he put on those people. He will answer to the Maker as do we all. But you already know that since you were the one who murdered him. Whatever crimes Howe committed it should have been brought to the Seneschal. What was the point in butchering a man in his own home?"

"You would know about that wouldn't you Loghain since you personally sent a blood mage to poison Arl Eamon." I saw Jowan slouch to cover himself.

"If I were to dirty my hands like that, I would send my own soldiers to complete the task. I would not trust the ability of an apostate."

"Do you truly believe that because my brother tells a different tale. He told me that you snatched the apostate from facing the Chantry's justice. Do you believe that as a coincidence?"

"The Chantry will not overlook this Teyrn Loghain. Going against a Templar's sacred duties is an offense against the Maker himself."

"Whatever I have done, I will answer for later. Right now I would like to know what the Wardens have done with my daughter."

"We have protected her from you." Eren said.

"You kidnapped my daughter, our Queen, by killing her guards and forcing her to your side! What have you done to keep her from coming home? Does she even live?"

"I believe I can speak for myself." Anora said and I heard gasps all throughout the Landsmeet. One lady nearly fainted. She walked, cool and calm to the center of the Landsmeet. "Lords and Ladies of the Landsmeet, the man standing before you is no longer the hero you know. This man is not the hero of River Dane. He turned away his troops and abandoned your king, refusing to protect him as he died bravely against the darkspawn. This man took my king's throne while his body barely grew cold and locked me away so I could not reveal his treachery. I would have already been killed if not for the Grey Wardens."

"Queen Anora speaks the truth." Eren said.

"So…the Wardens have even poisoned your mind Anora. I wished to protect you from this. My lords and ladies! We have been threatened before, invaded and have lost, then won back times beyond counting. We can never be truly conquered when we stand united. We cannot let ourselves be divided now! Stand with me Fereldans! With all of us even the Blight can be defeated!"

"The Warden! I'm with the Wardens!"

"South Reach stands with the Wardens."

"The Wardens helped me with a personal matter. I stand with them."

"Waking Sea stands with the Grey Wardens."

"Dragon's Peak supports the Wardens!"

"The Western Hills throw their support with the Wardens, Maker help us all."

"I stand by Loghain! We have no victory without him!"

"We all stand with the Wardens! The Blight is coming! We need the Grey Wardens!" I saw the tension with our group fade as we won by a landslide in the Landsmeet. I gave Eren a nod when he looked at me.

"The Landsmeet has voted against you Loghain. Step down." Eren said.

"Traitors all of you! All of you just stood idly by while the Orlesians pillaged your fields and raped your wives! You fought with us Eamon! You cared about this country before you grew old and fat and complacent to see what you have risked! None of you deserve a say about what happens in this country! None of you spilled the blood that I spilled for this country! How dare you judge me!"

"Call off your men and we shall settle this honorably." Eren said.

"Then let us end this. We both knew it would end like this. Maric once told me that a man is made by the quality of his enemies, I see that now. Though whether it is a compliment to me or you, I do not know. Enough! Let the Landsmeet decide the rules of the duel."

"It shall be fought according to tradition: a test of arms in single combat until one party yields. We who have assembled will abide by the outcome."

"So who shall it be Wardens? Which one of you will face me or do you have a Champion?" Eren looked at Alistair for a moment. I couldn't stop him from making the choice.

"Alistair will be our champion."

"Hmph, time to test the ability of our would be king. Prepare yourself." A small circle was left as Loghain and Alistair circled around each other.

"What are you doing Eren?" I harshly whispered. "If you let Alistair do this then he'll kill Loghain! Then what are we going to do with Anora?"

"I know what I must do Nia. I have seen this clearly since Ostagar."

"What do you mean?" He couldn't answer that when I heard the sound of clashing steel. Alistair and Loghain met each other's blades. Alistair pushed him off and did a shield bash, knocking him off his feet. Alistair tried a stab but Loghain rolled back onto his feet. Loghain let out a growl and they both met with shields. I saw the glare in Alistair's eyes. He pulled back his hand and sucker punched Loghain off him. He pummeled Loghain's face until it ran with blood. Alistair knocked him back and did a non-lethal stab on Loghain's abdomen. That was it. The duel was won. Alistair got up and Loghain knelt, his face bruised with blood coming out of his mouth. He spat on the floor.

"I'm surprised. There is some of Maric in you after all. That is good." Loghain said, standing up.

"Forget Maric. This is for Duncan." Alistair said. I took a step forward but Derek stopped me. Anora looked at Eren then at her father.

"Please, please!" Anora grabbed at Eren. Alistair and Eren shared a look before Eren nodded. Alistair took his sword and slashed. It hit Loghain's throat and blood gushed out, bathing Anora in blood. Loghain dropped to the floor, his blood pouring and Anora slumped over his body. If Alistair killed Loghain, then who was going to be king? Then it hit me. There was only one other person that can be king.

"It is decided then. Alistair will take his father's throne." Eamon said, coming down from the rafters.

"What? No. How did you decide? Did we even decide?" I kept on looking in between both Alistair and Eren. Eren refused to meet my gaze.

"He refuses the throne. I think everyone here has heard him. In short, that abdicates to me." Anora said, a servant bringing her a towel for her face. I found it amazing that she was able to switch faces so quickly.

"I do not think you are the appropriate person to mediate this Anora. Grey Warden Eren, will you help us decided?"

"Yes. I have decided. I shall lead this nation at Anora's side, as her husband." I bit my lip. So this was what Eren decided. I took a glance at Morrigan but she wasn't even in the room at the moment.

"Yes it has been decided. Eren shall be my husband, King of Ferelden, General of my armies, and the Hero of Ferelden from the Blight but before that, Alistair must hereby swear an oath the he will relinquish all rights to the throne for himself and his heirs."

"I never wanted it in the first place! Oh well," He cleared his throat, "Yes, of course. I relinquish all rights, happily I might add."

"Now ladies and gentlemen there is still the matter of the Blight and I appoint Eren Cousland to lead and gather our armies. We will not allow our country to be threatened by the Archdemon. We shall gather our forces and await the King's commands." I blocked out what Anora was saying. Eren's face was hard and I didn't know how he came to the conclusion of all of this.

"This is…a remarkable set of events. I'm guessing that I shall be awaiting your orders soon, Eren." Eamon said.

"Of course."

"Now that we got all that out of the way, I'm guess a dinner and a party afterward at Eamon's?" Alistair wondered.

"Then I will meet you there Wardens." Anora said. She walked toward the blood trail that came from her father's body. They had already dragged it out of here. Our group came out of the Landsmeet hall in joy.

"We did it! We won against Loghain!" Talen shouted.

"And we got justice for Duncan." Derek said somberly.

"That was the best part." Alistair smiled.

"So is it party and getting drunk time?"

"I do not think our festivities will begin just yet." Zevran said.

"The Blight is gathering against us. We need to also call on our allies." Sten said.

"I can't believe it's finally here." Jowan said.

"Not yet." Talen said. I stayed at the end of the group. I didn't know how to feel about all of this. Eren, king? I always thought that Alistair would have been the one to take the throne along with Anora. That was the best case scenario in all the games. Now this had to happen. Now what? All the information pointed toward one thing out of all of this and it wasn't going to be pretty.

"Nia why are you so quiet? We have won." Leliana said, next to me.

"Like Talen said, not yet. We still have the Blight. We managed to unite Ferelden but the real battle is coming. We need to be ready for it." I said sternly. Leliana gave me a look of surprise but it was enough to make everyone be wary of me. We got to Eamon's by dusk.

"Let's gather in the dining hall for now." Eren sighed.

"We'll need to talk to everyone there. Talen has something important to say." Derek said.

"Wait, did you refer to me by name?"

"I won't make it into a habit." Derek guffawed. I took one look at Eren and he shook his head at me. I didn't know anything and Eren didn't trust me enough to tell me of his plans. I didn't know what hurt worse.

"What do you want to say Talen?" Eren asked.

"You might want to sit down, ah sod it, the Archdemon is planning to attack Redcliffe and Denerim at the same time."

"What!? How do even know this?" Alistair asked.

"I heard it. I had another dream about the Archdemon…I heard it speak. I don't know when but I know it's going to be soon. Tomorrow night or in the following week, I'm not sure but we have to evacuate both cities or they'll both be lost." Talen explained.

"That's going to take time. We'll need to inform Bann Teagan and also warn the citizens in Denerim."

"I believe with your newfound King power, you'll be able to do that fine." Derek said. Eren nodded. I stared at the ground. I didn't know what to say.

"I can't believe it. The Archdemon…the Blight…it's nearly here." Leliana said, sitting down.

"We all knew that this was coming." Wynne said.

"Sooner rather than later I would think." Zevran said.

"Doesn't matter as long as my axe gets to smash a few heads!" Everyone was talking here and there but I stayed at the wall. I felt Eren's gaze on me but I didn't dare to look at him. I felt…betrayed for some odd reason. Alistair would have made a good king. Alistair and Anora both would have been the best bet on the whole country. Eren…I knew what would happen eventually.

"Nia…" Eren said softly, standing next to me.

"You didn't trust me. You didn't tell me anything."

"I knew you were going to be against it."

"How did you know that if you didn't even try to tell me?"

"Everyone assumed that Alistair would be the one to take the throne. I couldn't let that happen. He's a good man but he doesn't understand the power of a king."

"Heh, and you do?"

"…I believe so. This will allow me to never let men like Howe come to power. As much as I trust Eamon, I knew that he would be the true ruler behind Alistair. I won't let the same thing happen to me, happen to anyone else. When I saw the letters of Cailan in Ostagar, I knew that something had to be done. They need someone that understands the world, not a man that sees war as a game."

"It hurt…you didn't tell me."

"I'm sorry."

"…I guess I should congratulate you then, my lord."

"Don't start that." I looked at Eren, his face was almost unrecognizable to me. The once roguish, playful, teasing guy that was Eren was gone. That man died along with his family. What stood before me was a man hardened by his experiences and loss. A man that was going to be king. Whatever I was about to say was gone when Anora opened the door to our group. Her clothes were changed from the blood soaked ones from before. Everyone grew quiet when she came. Eren went to greet her. Morrigan still wasn't here.

"It is done. You have won the Landsmeet, we will be wed…and my father is dead. I never thought that he would go so far for his own ambition. I didn't think it would end like this."

"There is still a lot to be done, Anora."

"You are right. I am glad you honored our deal and I will keep mine. Our engagement will be presented at my coronation…as long as you are still interested."

"I am."

"Good. Eamon has already left for Redcliffe and has sent word that our armies have nearly gathered there. I will be heading there myself in due time. Bring your companions and we will march to Redcliffe as soon as we are able. You have united Ferelden, Warden…now we face the Blight."

"Not yet." Talen said, getting up. "I have deciphered a message from the Archdemon your highness. The Blight will hit Redcliffe and Denerim at the same time. The Archdemon will appear in one of the cities but I don't know which one."

"Well it's a safe bet that it'll be heading toward Redcliffe since it is closest to Ostagar." Derek said.

"I see. I will send out the alarm and evacuate the cities then. I will send word to Eamon as he marches there. You have saved many lives with this information, Warden." Talen nodded.

"We will meet you at the stables." Eren said. Anora nodded once before going out the room. "Everyone. I am glad that you all have gathered here. We stand on a momentous occasion, we stand against the Blight and all the loss that it has caused. I am not standing in front of you today a king, but as a friend. I thank you all for your support. Now we ride against the tide." We all gave Eren our nods.

"No matter what we will win." Alistair said.

"Time to show those darkspawn their guts!" Derek pounded his fists together.

"And make sure that they stay down." Talen said. It was something amazing, seeing those four band together. It made me feel far away. It was a world that not even I could touch.

"Pack your things, we ride to Redcliffe." The four Grey Wardens went out of the room first.

"Amazing how far Eren has come, isn't it?" Wynne said coming to my side. I looked at her for a second but looked away.

"You are not happy." Leliana said.

"Just my stomach doing flops. Anxiety you know? The Blight is really coming." I lied. "We have to pack. The sooner we get to Redcliffe the better." I got off from my little corner to my room. I packed what little I owned and saw my phone resting in the drawer. The estate would hold so I left it there. I knew I'd be back for it. As soon as we went out the news of the impending attack spread like wildfire. People were packing their things even though it was night. Guards were trying to keep order as the citizens were trying to pack their livelihoods and get their family to safe shelter. We were all going by horseback using the horses made for the royal family. The best of the breed.

This is where I will stop. I don't even know when the attack is going to happen. Talen said that it was going to be around a day to a full week. He won't know, we won't know, and the anxiety is already starting to grate at my nerves.

God help us all.

* * *

**Did anyone see that happening? Crazy huh? Five more chapters to go! :D**

**Shout out to , and for favoriting/following!**

**EG: **_That was the name! I couldn't remember it. Yes it is coming to a close but awakening is already done and I'm 10 chapters in the DA2 verse. It's...interesting_ lol  
**Chimera Spkye: **_Shush! I can't have you spoiling what might happen in DA2! But yes I agree with that, love that Doctor Who moment and thank you :3  
_**Shattered Soul 2021: **_Keep in mind that nobody believes in Seers in this world. They mostly say that they're hedge witches. Eren only noticed just for his benefit. Nia tries not to mention what she knows...  
_**Buggy300: **_Yes they knew but what can you expect? It's Morrigan and Flemeth but Flemeth knows a lot more than what she lets on, as per the usual. It seems that no one is fond of Anora much are they...  
_**Dforce76: **_lol the phone doesn't play much of a part here or in the next one in DA2 however...Avengers and DAO how would that work?  
_**ThelonewolfNT: **_You can guess as much as you like but no spoilers on the romance lol  
_**chaosrin: **_Most don't confide in those that say that have visions. Yes I loved all those moments too. Don't worry, Nia will have a reputation.  
_**GamerGeekGirl: **_Can't say her real name, not until WAY later lol Ah Cullen is cute no?_

**Please review :3**


	57. And the War Begins

9:31 Guardian 9th

Right now I'm resting in Redcliffe. True to the game as soon as we dropped on Redcliffe, the attack started.

Denerim was out of citizens by the time we rested after the Landsmeet. It was foreboding to see all the citizens with their heads down, leaving the city they loved. Some were adamant that the attack wouldn't happen there. We couldn't do anything for the ones that decided to stay. Our horses continued well into the night and we rested once we were past Dragon's Peak. I set up my tent. I felt the nervousness in the group. News of darkspawn attacks were going all over Ferelden. The only one that wasn't nervous was Shale but that was to be expected.

"Hey Wynne, the tent is ready for us."

"Oh thank you. Riding for so long aches these old bones." I looked over to where Anora and Eren were. They were talking quietly with each other. Morrigan was not with us. I remember her coming to the Landsmeet but, ever since Eren's announcement, she was nowhere to be found. I wondered if she knew what Eren was planning.

"Come mi niña let us-"

"Darkspawn!" Derek shouted. I heard the Shrieks coming from all around us. I grabbed my daggers and stabbed at the one that tried to get at my back. They came from everywhere, the sky, the shadows, the ground. I kicked one away from me but two more came to take its place. I saw Talen burned three down with Oghren slashing away near him. Sten and Eren were keeping two more away from Anora. Wynne pulled up a protective ward around her and Leliana. I punched one away from me that fell and Alfred crushed its face in his jaws. Zevran got another one that was near both of us. Jowan hit one with his mace that aimed toward Alistair. They both pummeled it down. Shale crushed two heads together. As quickly as they came, the battle was over.

"Status!" Eren shouted.

"We are fine!" Leliana shouted for her and Wynne.

"The only thing that got hurt were the darkspawn!" Oghren shouted.

"We are fine as well mi amigo."

"Don't worry, I don't think anyone got hurt during that time."

"A couple of blotches on my crystals but none the worse."

"I can't believe…" Anora started.

"Believe it your highness. This is a Blight. They can hear us…" Derek said.

"And we can hear them." Alistair ended.

"Fortifications should be built around the camp."

"How unnerving!"

"No poison, no ambush? Some assassins."

"Our camp is no longer safe."

"This is really the blight, isn't it?" Jowan wondered.

"Yeah."

"Derek and I will both be on watch tonight. Get some rest." Eren instructed. I sighed. It was uncomfortable sleeping in my armor but I couldn't afford getting ambushed again. As soon as first light came, we went on riding again. We passed by a few wagons and carts that were coming from Redcliffe. The news of the attack must have reached them. Their faces were dark and gloomy. We had to get to Redcliffe as soon as we camped by Lake Calenhad when the horses grew tired. The attack from last night unnerved everyone. As soon as first light hit, we began moving again.

"Eren! I'm thinking that the attack already happened!" Talen shouted as we passed Lake Calenhad. The sun was high in the sky.

"Why?"

"I heard it last night when the Darkspawn tried attacking us!"

"Then we need to get to Redcliffe as soon as we can! We cannot let these beasts take another part of our country!" Anora shouted. I couldn't bear another Lothering. We were in Redcliffe by afternoon. The horses were all exhausted. That was when I saw the fire.

"Darkspawn!" Eren shouted. We left the horses and we ran into the village.

"Grey Warden!" There was a man hiding behind an overturned wagon.

"What happened here?"

"Darkspawn started to attack the village. The people that couldn't leave all went into the castle."

"Get out of here unless you want to get killed!" Oghren shouted. The guy nodded and ran toward the Castle.

"Anora, get to the Castle with the others. I won't let this become another Lothering." Eren said.

"Right behind you, boss."

"Let's see if these ones enjoy playing with fire."

"Attack!" Alistair shouted and we all ran down toward the windmill, which was destroyed, where the first darkspawn were at. We were met with five Darkspawn. Alfred ran down the first one and they both tumbled down the hill. Alistair and Eren were the first ones up, charging and using their shields as battering rams. Leliana took one down with her arrow and Wynne froze two others. Sten and Derek broke the two that were frozen and the other two were taken down by Alistair and Eren. That's when we heard the howls. Five blight wolves came charging toward our group with another Hurlock right behind them. Alfred and one battled together, Shale coming up behind them to bash in the wolves heads. I put my knuckles together and did a cross hammerblow. The wolf went down. Another jumped on Eren but Derek came quickly and used his hammer to knock it down. Two more to go. Talen let out a fire spell and Zevran put one out. The last one burned to death and Sten decapitated the Hurlock that was in front of us. Another Hurlock jumped from the ground and grabbed onto Talen. Wynne froze it and Jowan hit it with his mace. Alistair got the darkspawn shield that the Hurlock held onto and tossed it to Jowan.

"That'll have to do for now. There are more down in the village!" Alistair shouted.

"Then what are we waiting for!?" Oghren was the first one to charge down. The rest of us followed. I saw the corpses hanging off what was left of the windmill's roof. The Darkspawn have left their mark. Eight more in total were waiting for us near the waterfall. I rolled to meet one and tripped it over the bridge. It roared as it splashed down. I evaded an arrow blow from the three that were on a small bridge. Leliana got one of those three with her arrows. Zevran evaded the one on the bridge to get to the three archers. Oghren used his axe on the last one on the bridge. Sten, Alistair, and Shale went forward to meet the emissary. Alistair used his Templar abilities and stopped its spellcasting and Sten stabbed right through its chest, and Shale knocked it into the waterfall for good measure. I ran toward the ones on the bridge with Zevran. We both knocked them down and they plummeted straight down. One last archer and it was frozen by Wynne and was smashed by Jowan.

"There are more coming down! Everyone out of the way!" Talen said. Two more blight wolves and three more Hurlocks. Talen did his famous fireball spell and got all of them out with one shot. We went passed the tavern down to where the center of the village was. An Ogre with ten more darkspawn were waiting for us.

"Finally something worth killing!" Oghren shouted, going right into the fray. The four Grey Wardens and Shale were right behind him. I saw a small spray of blood going toward the wolf and two Hurlocks. Jowan's handiwork. Zevran and I focused on the four charging us. Talen set them on fire, we finished them. The Ogre was battling Oghren, Derek, and Shale. Alistair and Eren were charging at the other darkspawn farther down the courtyard. I punched a darkspawn in the gut and slashed its throat. Another was taken down by a lighting spell by Talen. Three of them got their blood boiled by Jowan and the last wolf was ripped to shreds by Alfred. The Ogre let out a cry of pain, one of its legs amputated by Oghren the other kneecap was crushed by Shale. It fell and Derek smashed in its skull. I heard the stomps of another Ogre behind me far too late.

"Nia!" Zevran shouted as I was picked up like a rag doll by the Ogre. I felt its immense strength as it started to crush me.

"Kadan!" Sten shouted as he stabbed at the thigh of the Ogre. It growled and threw me against Sten. We were both frozen by a hidden emissary. The Ogre stomped toward over us. I saw Zevran sank his daggers into the Ogre, getting its attention. The Ogre back handed Zevran off of it but Shale began to pummel it with her crystal that crackled. Derek and Oghren came up to finish the Ogre while Alistair ran across from us to tackle the emissary. I felt myself being able to move and I evaded another hurlock's blow. I tackled it and stabbed into its eye socket, killing it. It was done. I spat out some blood from my mouth and saw the small fire around the village.

"That's all of them here. We need to get to the castle." Eren said.

"Let's go." Talen said. We ran up the trail and followed it to the bridge that connected us to Redcliffe Castle. We ran across the bridge and I heard the sounds of fighting in the air. There were so many darkspawn, I couldn't count them all.

"Make them pay!" Eren shouted. Talen stayed behind, a small concentration of magic in the air. I tackled the first darkspawn that I could see and smashed its face in. Alfred came beside me and mauled one on the ground. Sten ran up to the Hurlock that was about to slash at me with his sword.

"Everyone away from the courtyard now!" Talen yelled. I ran toward the wall as soon as I can and a massive tornado of fire washed the courtyard. The Darkspawn cried in pain as they fell one by one. I felt the heat even though I pressed myself against the wall. The firestorm ended and Jowan had to help Talen to his feet from his excess use of mana. It didn't matter though, more darkspawn started to come in through the bridge. The soldiers that were stationed at the main gate were using their crossbows to stop any of them from passing through. Leliana and Wynne joined them at the top, Eren, Alistair, Alfred, and Jowan all at the end of the stairs. Sten, Oghren, Derek, Zevran, Shale, and I were all out in the front making sure that none tried to pass. Darkspawn after darkspawn came running through. I punched, busted, stabbed, cleaved, and killed every single one that I tried but they were endless.

Emissaries and Alphas came in with the grunts. I got caught in a glyph of paralysis but Alistair cleansed the area. They had to come out and kill the enemy mages before they were able to catch us in their spells. An alpha managed to take off the helmet of Oghren but that made him angrier. His berserker rage came out and he swung wildly at any passing darkspawn. Zevran spun, evaded, and sank his daggers where it hurt. Shale was bashing heads together, tearing darkspawn apart with her fists, or just throwing them into each other. Leliana's arrows found themselves flying true to the smaller genlocks that were coming through. Wynne was having a tough time making sure everyone was healed. She had to call upon the spirit to help all of us. Jowan came and did his best to keep the darkspawn occupied. It was amazing how many heads he could crack with that mace of his. We couldn't keep this up forever. I was getting winded, trying to kill as much as I could. That's when I heard Talen give out a scream and ran right into the middle of the battle. There was a red mist covering him and all the darkspawn in the courtyard clawed at their faces.

"Don't let the blood touch you!" Jowan shouted. I ran away as the darkspawn, one by one, exploded in guts and blood. I saw Talen stumble onto the steps. I could have only imagined how much this was taking out of him. Leliana ran to him as he wobbled on his feet. I heard the all too familiar stomps of an Ogre. Eren and Alistair charged with Sten, Derek, Shale, and Oghren right behind them. I went to Talen and Leliana, trying to help him up. That's when I heard a raven crying over head. The raven changed into a rage of bees. The bees swarmed all over the Ogre. It tried to hit them but there were too small and too many. Derek shattered its knee and it went down. Alistair jumped up, stabbing at the Ogre's chest before stabbing it through its head. I gave out a long breath as one of the guardsmen came down to greet Eren. The bees reassembled themselves and Morrigan has joined our group again.

"My lords, thank the Maker you arrived." A guard said, coming down the stairs.

"Where is Anora and Eamon?" Eren asked.

"They are both inside along with Riordan of the Grey Wardens. Thankfully none of the darkspawn made it through. We sent out patrols to watch for your arrival and then we were attacked."

"Then there's no time to lose, take us inside."

"Yes my lord. They are waiting in the main hall." The guardsmen opened the main gate and we went inside. Morrigan gave me a small nod as she returned to her normal form.

"Where were you?" I whispered.

"Preparing." She gave me a look and I understood. We all clamored inside. Eamon, Bann Teagan, and Riordan were gathered in front of the massive fireplace.

"It is good to see you unharmed Eren as well as the others. The darkspawn that attack Redcliffe were too few in number. I am afraid that our fellow Grey Warden was right when he said the darkspawn would attack Ferelden. I assumed the bulk of the horde would make their way here but…"

"Then the Archdemon really did attack Denerim." Talen said.

"Good thing we sent out the warning." Derek said.

"They are but two days away from the capital. I ventured close to 'listen in' and I am certain that they will make their attack."

"Then we must march as soon as possible."

"Yes. I am afraid to be the bearer of bad news. The Archdemon has shown itself at the front of the horde."

"Maker preserve us."

"Finally." Shale said.

"But even with a small group like us barely made it here in three days, and on horses!" Alistair said.

"We have no choice. We must make a forced march to the capital at once. We must defend Denerim at all costs."

"The Archdemon is the important enemy here. We must trust in our allies to keep the rest of Ferelden safe." Eren said.

"And only the Grey Wardens can stop the Archdemon. We must all go."

"Then we march. The army that we have collected will have to be enough. Arl Eamon, how long before the army gets ready?"

"They will be ready to march by daybreak."

"Then let's get them ready. We have already evacuated the city but we cannot let her fall. I won't let the Darkspawn take another place on the map." Alistair said.

"Then this is war. Let's do it." Eren said.

"Now you're talking boss!"

"We're the only ones that can make a change and we'll do it with our last breath." Talen said.

"More than likely it will face its final breath before it reaches the Archdemon." Shale muttered.

"I will give out the order at once. I will notify you all the moment we are ready."

"Thank you Arl Eamon."

"Grey Wardens there is another business to discuss amongst us. If you could meet me before you retire, that would be for the best."

"Then I will have someone show you and your companions to your rooms. Get some rest, we will need it to face the task ahead of us." Eren nodded at all of us and we all went our separate ways. I got to the room where I last stayed in and I heard a knock at my door.

"Fergus?"

"Good Evening, well, not so good with the darkspawn clawing at us."

"You stayed."

"Of course. There is nowhere to run at this point."

"Are you…?"

"No, my leg hasn't been fully healed so I won't join you or my brother in combat. I wish I could. Oren is with the rest of the villagers in the second floor. I will stay with them and do my best to guard all that are here." I nodded. "…Is it true what they said about my brother becoming the king?"

"He was able to convince Anora, yes."

"I see. He shall make a fine king. You must get your rest. I shall pray for our success in the coming days. Good night Nia."

"Good night Fergus." He left my room and I sat down on my bed. My armor had darkspawn blood all over it. I dumped it in a corner. I longed for a bath. I wiped myself down with a moist towel instead. I went down into the main hall and everyone was standing around. I guess they had the same idea.

"You look worse for wear mi niña."

"You don't look too good yourself Zevran."

"We are all worried about the Blight. The Archdemon has shown itself. Andraste guide us all."

"I do not believe the Maker is guiding us anywhere. We have our destination already planned for us." Shale said.

"It is only an expression Shale."

"It needs a better one."

"There's no turning back anymore." Jowan said.

"I am surprised Eamon is letting you stay here." Wynne wondered.

"I don't think he cares too much who gets to kill the darkspawn."

"Sodding right you are!" Oghren belched.

"Disgusting..." Shale rolled her eyes.

"It is in Denerim where we will make our stand. I am surprised that the Warden had already known of it." Sten said.

"Avernus' potion allowed him to listen in on what the darkspawn were saying. It's useful." I said.

"I was surprised at how Talen dealt with the darkspawn in the courtyard it was…messy." Leliana said.

"Don't worry. Talen only did it to protect everyone. Demons don't flock to him like they do me. If there's one thing I know, is that Talen will never allow himself to get possessed."

"I hope you are right." Wynne said.

"Bah! There's no point in worrying about what's going to happen! In a few days, we'll be marching towards Denerim and kill those sodding, rotting bastards!"

"If only we had your faith Oghren."

"There's nothing about faith here elf. There's only me, my axe, and my axe going into darkspawn flesh!"

"Or it could be its flesh on some sword of a Hurlock."

"What did you say to me you walking battering ram!?"

"Did it not hear me? Should I repeat myself?"

"At least someone is enjoying themselves." Jowan mumbled.

"What do you think Riordan is talking to them about?" Leliana asked.

"I am not sure, some dark Grey Warden secret perhaps?" Zevran asked.

"It's not something we should dwell on. Whatever Riordan has to say it's for their ears only."

"Until Talen comes along and tells Leliana or Eren comes and tells me." I said.

"At this point we can only guess. Come now, we should not waste this time chatting. We will need all the rest we can get." Wynne said.

"Fleshy creatures do need rest before going off to their deaths. Unlike I who is a far better model." Wynne chuckled.

"If only we could be like you Shale."

"She's right. I'm going off to bed to get whatever sleep I can get." Jowan said. Leliana nodded and went to her room. Oghren belched, taking another swig of whatever he was carrying.

"Shall I escort you to your room?"

"You're going to do it anyway Zevran, so you might as well." I went down the hall to my room where Zevran joined me. "I can't believe it. All this planning, all this recruiting, and we're all finally here."

"I could not ask for a better way to spend my time. I am very proud of myself for staying. I could only imagine the stories they will share about us."

"Not just us Zevran. Our allies, our army, and the Grey Wardens. They'll be talking about everyone."

"It is true."

"It's going to take a few days though of full marching to get to Denerim. I wonder if we'll get there in time to save the city."

"Do not let your optimism fail you mi amor."

"Yeah, that's the one thing good about me, always looking at the bright side."

"And what say you about all of this, hm?" I looked at him dead in the eye.

"We're going to win."

"And that is the Nia I know." I smiled at him.

"We'd better get some rest."

"May I sing you a lullaby?"

"No, I'm good on that department. Good night Zevran." Zevran's hand passed my ear that had his earring. He kissed me once on the top of my head before leaving. I closed my door. I could only think about what Eren was going to do. Was he going to take up on Morrigan's offer? I could only wonder. If she stays with the group, then I know that he did take it. It wouldn't surprise me if he did. This is it. I need to sleep now.

9:31 Guardian 10th

We've been at a hurried march since the first light. I put on my armor and got my daggers checked. I went down into the main hall where Eamon and the others were talking. Then I saw Bodahn and his son Sandal.

"Bodahn? You're here?"

"Ah good to see you Nia. We came back after that whole business with the evacuation and Arl Eamon asked us to supply his soldiers and we could have some room to ourselves. We will be joining you all on your march to Denerim."

"Wow, I didn't know you cared so much."

"We care about the world. If there's no people, then no money to be made!" I chuckled at that one.

"Always a merchant huh? I was wondering if you had any runes that you can put on these. Maybe a few that are good against darkspawn?"

"Enchantment?"

"I could pay you."

"You heard the lady Sandal."

"Enchantment!" Sandal took my daggers and stared to inscribe a rune on them. I saw Eren come downstairs with Morrigan behind him. She gave me a small smile and I knew that they would all be ok.

"Nia."

"Eren."

"It's time."

"Has everyone…?"

"They are already outside besides Wynne, Leliana, and Talen."

"Here you go my lady." I took my daggers but felt a small shock from taking them. I didn't worry on it too much.

"Thank you Bodahn and Sandal."

"Enchantment!"

"Here's a few silvers for the enchantment."

"Thank you. Now it's best that we all get to marching."

"There are no better words that you could have said." Eren, Morrigan, and I came out of the main gates. The army of Redcliffe were marching out of the bridge. Alistair, Talen, Derek, Sten, Zevran, Oghren, Jowan, Shale, and Riordan were all out and waiting. Zevran gave me a warm smile and Eren stood before them all.

"There are no words to describe this situation at all. We are at war and the Archdemon awaits us. March like your lives depended on it for many more depend on us." Talen and the others came down the stairs to join us. "We are Grey Wardens."

"In War, Victory." Alistair said.

"In Peace, Vigilance." Derek said.

"In Death, Sacrifice." Talen ended. Eren gave us one final nod before we all began to march our way forth toward Denerim. Morrigan turned into her raven form and flew across the sky. Talen surprised everyone by doing the same but he wasn't a raven. Oddly enough, he turned into a dove. It made me realized that Morrigan and Talen were nearly two sides of the same coin. Darkness and light. Ice and Fire. Both mages and both extremely talented and yet they were so vastly different. This was our advance against the Archdemon.

We didn't stop for anything. I saw mages coming from the circle toward us. The Dalish elves came from all sides to join us. The dwarves right behind us. The army that we tried so hard to gather was now moving with us. If this wasn't enough to stop the Archdemon, I don't know what was. We kept moving forward, torches lighting the way for us. We have stopped in the dead of night, the two moons basking us in their light. We're resting for now. We still have a few more days to keep on marching. So I prayed.

God protect us all.

* * *

**4 more chapters left! The Battle of Denerim is nigh! O_O**

**Buggy300: **_In my first storyline I was going to have Alistair but then I changed it. There is a reason I did. The boons were easy enough once Eren was made_ King.  
**ThelonewolfNT: **_Very poetic and yes, Nia is going to need that good luck.  
_**Guest: **_Whether you were here in the beginning or not, as long as you enjoy the story, then my mission is complete :3  
_**GamerGeekGirl: **_No Nia x Alistair either lol you'll have to_ wait  
**EG: **_Thanks!  
_**Guest: **_Nia was upset that Eren didn't trust her enough to tell her about his plans, especially after everything they went through. She's also upset because Nia knows exactly what happens if he was king in the future.  
_**Chimera Spyke: **_It was unfortunately out of Nia's hands whether or not Loghain was going to be killed. But just as they portray, the Dragon Age world is not perfect and you have to be a little grey on your morality to continue. Nia disliked Loghain but would have pushed for him to live. I hope you enjoy the battle that is to come :3  
_**Dforce76: **_I haven't watched it so no spoilers! Yes, Eren being on the throne is pertinent to the story later on._

**Please Review :3**


	58. The Battle of Denerim

The Battle of Denerim

"How are you holding up Nia?" Talen asked. Nia looked nervous. She looked at the sky above as dusk began to settle and the fire from Denerim, blocking what little light they had left.

"I won't lie when I say I'm nervous. What about you? Can't you hear what the darkspawn are saying?"

"No, that only happens when I sleep and, if the battle takes as long as I think it's going to, we're not going to get sleep at all."

"Weird because I love to sleep but now…I'm way too anxious to even think of getting it." Talen nodded with her sentiment.

"We will be victorious, just you watch. The Maker will smile upon us this day and everyone will hear the stories for years to come." Leliana said, coming up to join them.

"We'll see." Nia responded.

"I hope Schmooples will be ok at Redcliffe." Leliana mumbled.

"The nug will be fine Leliana. It survived the attack. Let's see if we have the same luck." Talen said. The march continued well until the fourth night until the gates of Denerim was in their sights.

"Denerim…" Eren gasped. All of the companions stood at the gates, the crown jewel of Ferelden, burning.

"There's no point in standing here! Let's go kick some darkspawn arses!"

"For once something we can both agree on!" Derek shouted. He hoped to win a name so his people could be proud of him. Derek knew that if he survived here, that he would go back to his people and live for them. Damn the things they said to him and damn the things they did to him. Derek was a Grey Warden now and he would find a way to bring the casteless back from the grave.

Eren looked toward the group and his eyes landed on Nia. He thought about the first time he met her, the first time he felt something for her, and the times when she protected him. All throughout their journey and there were many times where she could have left, but she didn't. Steadfast and loyal, honorable and honest. There weren't many women like Nia, Eren thought.

"No matter what happens, you need to promise me you will stay alive." Eren said. Nia gave him one nod and a smile.

"I'm the optimistic one remember? Everything will be ok, for the most part. Let's go. We can't keep those darkspawn waiting." She took out her daggers and twirled them. He remembered the day when she could barely pick up a training sword or barely walk with a set of medium armor. They had both grown on their journey and he couldn't pick a better person to shed blood with. Alistair ran to the top of the stairs to address the army.

"Look at our grand city, Denerim! Burning because of the might of the darkspawn horde! Gaze upon them now, but fear them not!" Eren joined Alistair, overlooking the armies that have gathered. "The man beside me is a native Ferelden, rising to the ranks of the Grey Wardens! He is proof that greatness lies within each and every one of us! He has survived despite the challenges before him, and without him, none of us would be here today! Today we save Denerim! Today, we avenge the death of my brother, King Cailan! Today we show the Grey Wardens that we remember every one of them and honor their sacrifice! For Ferelden! For the Grey Wardens!" The armies shouted as they all marched ahead. Eren and Alistair gave each other a nod. They joined their companions on their dead sprint to Denerim, the Archdemon howling in the distance.

-/- Written by the Grey Wardens that witnessed the Battle of Denerim: Eren Cousland, Talen Surana, Derek Broska, Alistair Theirin

9:31 Guardian ?

We reached the gates of Denerim. Our armies were at a dead sprint going to fight the Darkspawn that littered the courtyard. The poor guardsmen that were left were slaughtered in front of us. I wouldn't have any of that and no one else that was beside me either. On any of my side I saw the army with me, humans, elves, dwarves, it didn't matter. We were all united by one cause: the Blight. Now we are fighting together. Blood was shed, lives were lost but it didn't matter. We had to stop the Blight, right here and now.

We clashed. I saw the first of our allies fall and even more with the power to stop these beasts. I sank my blades into every darkspawn back I saw, I cracked every monster's cranium that didn't hold a helmet, I evaded arrows, blades, shields, all for one thing and that was the complete annihilation of the darkspawn. I saw everyone that was around me fighting for their lives and the lives of Ferelden. Arrows found themselves in the throats of darkspawn, blade against blade, hammer against chests, axes against armors. It was a wild flurry of activity that I could not even begin to describe.

That was when I heard the roar of the Archdemon and bore witness to the colored flames that it produced. It was a darkness I couldn't begin to fathom or understand. I saw Riordan's glance at the Archdemon. I felt guilty that I wouldn't be able to stop him from dying but it was his death that gave us the chance to take down the Archdemon. We all ran through the darkspawn and they began to retreat into the main gates. All of us ran inside and we found a bulk of the horde waiting for us.

"Attack!" Alistair shouted. We didn't need an order. All of us jumped into the fray. I couldn't count how many were on the battlefield. All I knew was that these bastards needed to go down. I ran along with Zevran, the first of Leliana's arrows piercing through the darkspawn. I saw the flames of Talen overwhelming a small group. Alistair, Eren, and Jowan running through them with their blades and mace. Sten, Oghren, and Derek using their two handed weapons with ease and cutting down all those that opposed them. Shale was using her body as a massive battering ram, squishing all sorts of heads and crushing her opponents. I saw Morrigan transform into her raven form, before transforming midair into her spider form and crushing all that laid before her. Alfred sinking his jaws into the ones that fell and Wynne, tossing around earth as if it were native element. Zevran and I ran around, twisting and turning, stabbing into the meaty sensitive parts of the darkspawn. We rushed through, stabbing only where it was necessary and running. There were too many to concentrate on one foe. If the ones I hit were weakened by the time someone else got to them, then it was still a win.

I heard the battle going around me but I knew I couldn't focus on protecting our group. We all splintered to attack as many as we could. I was winded by the sprint we did and my side was killing me. It didn't stop me from attacking all the ones I could. The darkspawn that fell were crushed by my knuckles or their throats cut by my daggers. I ran around, looking for my next target. Weirdly enough that I was surrounded by so much death and yet I have never felt so alive. I heard the cries of victory all around me. Another fireball flew by head and exploded a group of darkspawn. Leliana's arrows finding all the ones that I weakened, Alfred running around like a dog on fire, mauling all the throats he could find.

It was the most fearful and exhilarating experience that I have ever felt. I saw the blood mist, trailing after Jowan. It only took a little to make these suckers explode. I saw their numbers starting to dwindle as the army broke through the main gates. Humans, elves, dwarves, mages, all working together. It was a sight that could only be seen to believe. The darkspawn came from everywhere but less and less came through until the battle was over, for now. We all gathered in the center, Talen using his talents to take off as much as the darkspawn blood as he could. Riordan came to our group.

"We have managed to clear the gates. We are doing better than I had hoped."

"Speak for yourself." Derek said.

"The Darkspawn have only stopped their assault for the time being. We do not know when they will begin again." Sten said.

"We're outnumbered three to one. Betters odds than most, but still!" Oghren said.

"At least it still has the upper hand by having me around. Although if you have a plan going against the Archdemon, I would hope that it would say so."

"What are we going to do now Riordan? I assume that you have a plan?"

"With the forced march, our army will not last long. We must reach the Archdemon as soon as possible. I suggest taking a small group with you, the four of you might not be enough. The rest of your companions will stay here to prevent more darkspawn from entering Denerim on our tails." Riordan said to Eren.

"It's going to take a miracle to fight a flying dragon." Eren said.

"We've done it before." Talen scoffed.

"Not like this priss."

"That is true. We must reach a high point in the city, Fort Drakon would suit our strategy."

"The top of…? We're going to draw the Archdemon's attention?" Alistair asked.

"The only way to fight a dragon is if it's standing on the ground, right?" I said.

"We do not have a choice here Alistair. We must force the attention of the Archdemon to fight it but it will not be easy."

"When is it ever?" Derek mumbled.

"As soon as we engage with the Archdemon, it will call on its generals to help it."

"I heard them in my dreams. There are two in Denerim." Talen described.

"It is as he says. You may seek them out before you approach the Archdemon."

"If we are able to stop the generals, we will be able to stop the darkspawn from causing further harm to the city." Leliana said.

"It may also waste time and resources trying to find them."

"We'll do it. I'll lead them." Talen said.

"What do you say boss?" Derek asked. Eren looked at all of us and nodded to Riordan.

"I'm ready."

"You must also keep in mind the allies that have infiltrated further into the city. They will help you as you encounter them. Call on your horn, and they will be directed to you but I warn you that their strength will be limited. Pick the ones that will join you into the city, Wardens."

"There are four of us." Derek said.

"Four of us can't combat an army." Alistair argued.

"No. It won't be enough." Eren said.

"We'll need as many as we can on the ground though." Talen said.

"Two, we'll only take two." Eren suggested.

"Fine by me." Alistair said.

"Whatever you say boss." Eren looked toward us and he walked toward me.

"Nia. I know you'll protect me. You've saved me numerous times already." I was surprised when he chose me but I nodded.

"And I'll save you as many times as I can which goes to all of you."

"Nice to see you'll be protecting us." Talen said flatly and I shoved him.

"Leliana."

"What?" Talen asked, his voice becoming higher.

"It is alright Talen. I have been preparing for this.

"You can get tainted or worse! This isn't like the other times Leliana, if I can't get to you in time then-"Leliana shut him up with a kiss. I looked away and rubbed my face.

"I am stronger than you think I am."

"So this is it then? Our little party to save the world?" Alistair said. Eren nodded.

"Fair enough. Now to the matter of who will lead the ones that stay."

"Sten." All four of them said.

"Very likely."

"Good then we have done all we can for now. Nothing that you have done has prepared for what you will face. Maker watch over all of you." Riordan said, going through the gates first. Eren looked over to Morrigan and they went off to talk quietly apart from the group. Talen and Leliana did the same.

"You better cut open those darkspawn and show them their guts!" Derek said, firmly grabbing Oghren by the shoulder.

"And you better smash their stones all the way to their heads!" They both laughed it up.

"Kadan." I looked at Sten. "If you fall today, know that you have my respect."

"I won't fall Sten. I promised you my recipe book for sweets."

"Promises cannot be made unless you know you can fulfill them."

"I will Sten." Sten nodded at me.

"It will protect itself spirit? I would hate to have known it for so little when it is such a delight to talk to." Shale said.

"Don't worry Shale, I think I'll be fine." I said.

"So I guess this is it then? You will really be battling the horde of the darkspawn." Jowan said.

"Yep. Even thought our time was short Jowan, I think you've earned your spot in our mismatched family."

"I…thank you. Thank you for many things. I'll make sure to protect everyone I can."

"Good." I said punching him in the arm.

"Ow!"

"We have to work on that." I chuckled.

"Be safe Wynne. I still want you to nag me when I get back." Alistair said.

"Oh I'll give you a good finger wagging if you manage to get back."

"I'd like that." I smiled at our group. We've been through so much. Alfred bumped my leg and he whined.

"Oh don't be sad Alfred. When I come back, I'll make sure to rub your belly and get you a nice stick to throw." He whined again. I rubbed his face. "You make sure to protect everyone, ok? Be a good boy and maul those darkspawn to pieces." He gave me a small boof.

"Mi amor." Zevran looked conflicted. "I am…saddened to hear that I won't be able to fight with you. I could not imagine if you were to…" I went to him and grabbed his hand.

"Hey, I'm not going to die."

"I would not wish that upon you. I would rather that I go with you but I cannot go against the Grey Warden's wishes."

"I won't die Zevran. You better not die as well." He chuckled and gave me a kiss on the forehead.

"More than likely my face will end up on some darkspawn's boot and I will-" I rolled my eyes, grabbed his collar and kissed him. It was short but enough to grab his attention.

"You'll get another one if you stay alive." I said. He laughed at me while I went toward the group that were heading in the city. Morrigan gave me a passing nod. We both knew. Leliana gave me a raise eyebrow but I shrugged. The army made a small line for us to the gate that leaded into the city. Alistair, Eren, Derek, Talen, Leliana, and I were going to march in and see this through to the end.

"You ready to stab and punch the life out of these darkspawn?" Alistair asked.

"Anytime."

"Maker watch over us. Andraste preserve us. In the name of the Maker, so shall it be."

"Let's hope He's watching over us." Talen mumbled.

"We'll need more than that to get us through the night." Derek spat on the floor.

"It is time." Eren said. We walked and I heard the cheers of the soldiers, their hopes walking along with us. I never thought that I would be witness to all of this. I thought for sure I'd be in the back making sure that the darkspawn wouldn't reach the four Grey Wardens. Instead, I was at the front lines, making history and I knew that this was a moment I wouldn't forget.

"We're going to need to move fast. The good thing is we won't have to worry about the citizens since they all left. The two generals are going to be in the marketplace and in the Alienage." Talen explained as we moved through the gates leading into the city.

"The marketplace is the closest." Leliana said.

"It's also the most open. We'll be sitting ducks out there." Derek said.

"We have to take our chances. Our allies are scattered all over the city. If we call on them, they'll be sure to be there." Eren said. We ran through the houses, fires scattered everywhere. We fought the odd band of darkspawn but they would be concentrating on protecting the generals.

"Nervous?" Leliana asked.

"Terrified." I said. "But there's no way I'm going to miss this."

"It is a good characteristic. It will make you cautious."

"Yep." I saw the gate leading into the marketplace. We all shared a look before going and opening the door. The marketplace was on fire, buildings were torn down, and smoke wafted into the sky. We walked passed where Genitivi and the tavern used to be and there was an emissary waiting for us with three Ogres.

"Shit." I said. Derek shouted, gathering their attention. Alistair went for the emissary to stop it from using its spells. Leliana shot at the Ogres while Talen got his fireball ready. Eren was already going out to fight them. I hesitated for a second, thinking I was in way over my head then I pushed it out of the way. I said I would protect them and that was what I was going to do. I ran after Eren. He rammed his shield into one Ogre, the emissary stopped his spells because of Alistair. One was being slowly beaten by Derek. Talen did a fireball on the other two, barely missing Eren and me. I stabbed onto the calf of an Ogre before it kicked me away. The emissary was down, one Ogre got his face smashed by Derek. Two left, one was burning slowly thanks to Talen. Eren, Alistair, and I focused on the one that wasn't burning. Alistair and Eren shared a look and they both went behind the Ogre, slamming their shields into its legs. It tipped over and slammed itself into the ground. I took that opportunity to get to its head and stabbed it through the eye. It shuddered for a second before it was dead.

"Look out!" Leliana shouted. The last ogre, grabbed a nearby boulder and threw it at us. I jumped out of the way as the boulder crushed the doors of the tavern. Leliana pelted the Ogre with arrows before Derek shattered its kneecap, bringing it down. Alistair slashed at its neck before stabbing downward through its mouth. All three laid on the ground dead.

"Ogres, why did it have to be Ogres? Why can't we have darkspawn tax collectors or something?" Talen said, wiping off the sweat from his brow.

"Another one coming!" Eren shouted. The stomps of the Ogre came before it set itself down for a charge.

"Out of the way!" Alistair shouted as the ogre tried ramming someone in the group. We were lucky that it missed entirely but the closest one to its attack range was Leliana. She ran from it and it chased it. I ran toward her, jumped, and sank my daggers into the flesh of the Ogre's back. It roared and spun around. I didn't let go of my daggers and began to climb on top of the Ogre's back until I reached its neck. I sank one into its neck until it severed the spine and the Ogre fell into the ground.

"Two more!" Derek shouted.

"Andraste's flaming sword! They just keep coming!" Talen shouted. I took out my daggers from the fallen Ogre and ran to where Derek, Alistair, and Eren were fighting the two Ogres. We were fighting behemoths left and right. I was already tired from before. I stopped and took a calm breath. I haven't used this power for a while. I felt that burning orb but instead of letting it fill me, I gave it a small touch. I felt power rush into me but it was different. It didn't feel overwhelming. I felt it empowering me. I ran over to the two Ogres. I jumped and pulled my hand back into a brutal haymaker that twisted the Ogre's neck to an almost 360 degrees. That got the other Ogre's attention and it was distracted when Derek pulled back and slammed his hammer onto its back. Eren roared, him and Alistair employing the same tactic as the other one. Talen came over and set its head on fire to the point of ashes.

"What was that?" Eren asked when he pointed at the Ogre.

"Can't explain now, one more Ogre!" I said as another blasted through where the merchants kept their items. I saw arrows protrude from its arm, and another one set in flames. Derek slammed his hammer into its kneecap and Talen did the same thing to its head once it got on the ground. Alistair ran his shield into an emissary that tried to sneak into the fight. Using his Templar abilities, he stopped its spell casting and it got an arrow through the eye, falling dead.

"Stoning nug runners! That…was…exhausting."

"Getting old Derek?"

"I'm feeling it priss."

"Ok, a moment Nia, what did you do?" Eren asked. I felt that power fade and I sneezed.

"Oh sorry. You remember that glowing power I had? I…used it again."

"You're not bleeding to death though." Talen said.

"Yeah, I know. I did something different and it looked like it did the trick. Anyway, we shouldn't be talking here. We need to go out and kill the general." Eren nodded. We had to save the questions for later. What I did was useful and it didn't leave me a bleeding mess. I had to be careful though since I didn't know for how long I could keep it up. The torn buildings covered most of the ground so we didn't worry about getting ambushed anywhere. We followed the wreckage to where Eamon's estate was. As I thought, it was still standing. I worried for my phone but I knew it would be safe there. We neared where the Chantry was and the Grey Wardens stopped.

"Do you feel that?" Talen asked.

"The general." Alistair said. We all nodded and ran toward the Chantry. There were two Ogres guarding the general.

"Alistair focus on the general! Everyone else cover him!" Eren shouted. I ran with Eren to one of the Ogres while Derek and Talen focused on the other one. Eren shielded himself from a ram that the Ogre did. I saw Leliana's arrows sticking out from the chest of it. I ran behind and stabbed the thighs of the Ogre. It kicked me off but I guarded myself. I rolled around the ground and I saw Derek already brought down his Ogre and Talen was setting its head on fire. I got up as the Ogre grabbed Eren. I jumped and sunk my daggers into the arm that grabbed Eren. The Ogre roared and dropped him. I got my weapons back and twirled to the back where I punched the back of its knee. It stumbled slightly before Eren rammed his shield into the other knee, causing it to fall. It fell near Leliana and she took out one of her daggers and stabbed it through its eye. I saw Alistair beheaded the general as we neared him.

Then as the General fell, an Ogre destroyed the Chantry's wall and rammed Alistair. He shouted in pain as he rolled on the ground. Derek shouted and got the Ogre in the gut. Another Ogre came right behind it. Leliana got the Ogre in the eye and it roared in pain. Talen used that to use a lighting spell. It got the arrow like a rod and electrocuted the Ogre. The other was brought down by Alistair and Eren, then it got its face smashed in by Derek's hammer.

"Watch out!" Eren shouted as another Ogre appeared right behind Leliana and another from the Chantry. We were surrounded by both of them.

"There's no end to them!" Eren shouted. I saw Talen take out a lyrium potion and he drank it. His body lit up with magic and a red mist came over him.

"Get down!" The red mist traveled to the two Ogres. They stopped in their tracks. Talen's hands shook as he tried controlling them. They both got down on their knees before exploding in darkspawn gore and guts. Talen let out a gasp and stumbled into the ground. Leliana grabbed him and looked at him with worry.

"Priss!"

"I'm…fine…that took a lot out of me…I could only drink two more of those potions before…lasting damage. Let's keep going." Talen said, grabbing his stomach and groaning. I heard two more roars.

"Oh frigging hell!" I shouted. At this point I wasn't going to get ourselves killed. I tapped into that power and lightly touched it. I let out a calm breath and grabbed Derek's hammer. I ran toward the two Ogre that were stampeding toward us. I rotated on my heels and swung. The Ogre that took it has its guts sprayed before the momentum carried it into the building. The Ogre got down ready to charge but I ran faster and brought down the hammer onto its head, splattering me with darkspawn brains. I felt that small power go away again and the hammer got too heavy to carry. I grunted as I let down the hammer and I felt a small trail of blood go down my nose. I wiped it as the others came toward me.

"Whatever you did missy, was useful." Derek said, grabbing his hammer.

"Let's hope I won't have to use it too much. Next time? Call on our allies. We won't be able to defeat the Archdemon if we're falling dead on our feet." I said. Eren nodded.

"We came what we were after. Let's go to the Alienage." Talen said. His body still glowed with excess mana from the lyrium potion. We needed to use that as quickly as possible.

So we left the marketplace and headed for the Alienage.

-/-

It was almost a thing of beauty when I saw her grab that hammer to pulverize the Ogres in our midst. I'll tell you one thing, that girl would have made a great Grey Warden if she allowed us to put her through it. Not something I would recommend to anyone either. Unfortunately, she was opposed to it as well.

-/- Written by Derek Broska, witness to the destruction of the Denerim Marketplace.

* * *

**WOO THE BATTLE HAS BEGUN! So updates every two days since we're down to the last 3 CHAPTERS! KYAH! I can't wait!**

**Shout out to naturaetsophia and Hypermuffins for following/favoriting!**

**Buggy300: **_Oh yeah the battle will be interesting and their allies will be called upon. Yes the Old God Baby will arise! Muahaha! Ok I'm done now. Oh and bytheway, Those Who Speak still happens even if Alistair didn't become king based on the writers. The Comics are supposed to complement the story, as long as Alistair is alive, it'll_ happen.  
**Dforce76: **_I'm going to be watching it next tuesday, so excited! Oghren doesn't become a grey warden until Amaranthine and yes there will be changes to who gets Amaranthine as well. "Fight of the Century?" More like "Running away and hug" of the century.  
_**FearaNightmare: **_I will never let this story fall flat and disappear! Once I have a goal, I go for it! Unless I start to get flames, then my spirit wavers.  
_**ThelonewolfNT: **_I think you'll enjoy the last battle. I wrote it based on the battle that I read in the Last Flight._  
**GamerGeekGirl: **_Well I'll follow the timeline. Amaranthine first, then DA2 followed by what happens in Asunder, then DAI. And no Zevran x Nia in inquisition. She falls for someone else. Also she will not be the Herald :)_

**Please Review!**


	59. Fort Drakon

9:31 Guardian ?

We ran out of the door leading out of the marketplace and found the one major road that would lead into the Alienage. I saw our allies bringing the fight to the darkspawn that were in the city. That gave us a good distraction to get to the Alienage without any problems. We got to the Alienage and it was better preserved than the rest of the city. There were no fires or houses destroyed. I looked everywhere and it looked like they were able to evacuate in time. The Shianni cutscene didn't happen which made me feel good.

"There's a large group of darkspawn ahead!" Alistair shouted.

"That's where the general is then!" Eren agreed. We ran to the gate where an Ogre was trying to take it down. All the darkspawn were gathered there. Talen laughed maniacally as he called upon an inferno and setting it at the darkspawn that were there. He stumbled slightly but his body was shining with magic. His staff waved as he got another lighting spell ready. It was a huge thunderstorm. That was when his shining stopped.

"Muahaha! Die you rotting bastards, die!" I snorted, stopping myself from laughing.

"You glad we have a mage with us?" Derek said, lightly shoving Alistair.

"Well…does he have to laugh like that?"

"It is cute, yes?" The darkspawn that were stupid ran into the line of fire, getting electrocuted and burning to death. The spells stopped and there were more darkspawn coming toward us. Leliana got her arrows through most of them as we ran to meet them.

"Get down!" We all ran for cover as Talen let off another fireball in their midst. I felt the heat hit my face as they burned to death. More kept on coming and I busted my knuckles on each and every one of them. Derek's wild swings were getting the better part of the darkspawn while Eren and Alistair fought side by side using their shields to ram them. I came up and got the ones that fell, stabbed and crushed. I heard the stomps of an Ogre that stomped through and decimated any darkspawn caught in them. Derek ran and swung his hammer into the Ogre's gut, causing it to kneel in pain. Eren didn't take any chances and jumped on it. They fell and Eren stabbed the Ogre in the eye, it shuddered before lying dead. The battle was over and we were walking on top of darkspawn bodies everywhere.

"Are you all right Talen?" Leliana asked. Talen shook his head.

"I'm fine, just light headed."

"Be careful not to overwhelm yourself." Eren said. Talen nodded.

"The General must have died along with the rest. Let's cross the bridge and get going." Alistair said. We agreed and ran across the bridge…only for the Archdemon to appear and destroy it. We all looked at the bridge.

"There's only one way to go then." Derek said, spitting on the ground.

"Where to next?" Talen asked.

"The Palace district, it has the most direct way to Fort Drakon. We can only hope that Riordan is able to get the Archdemon's attention." Eren said.

"Let us pray that we do not find any resistance getting there." Leliana said.

"Well the Alienage is very preserved. It's the main gates that were almost destroyed. We need to move quickly." I said.

We all went off at a light jog as we went up the stairs to take the only way to the Palace District. The main roads had corpses of darkspawn left and right, buildings kept on burning but the destruction wasn't as bad as we thought. I could only hope that Sten and the others were doing alright.

-/-

I'll say this about the Qunari, they know how to sodding fight. None of that fancy twirling or foot work. They get a sword and they kill with it. It was as simple as that. They fight like a blighter as well, not going down for anything! Sodding force of nature, those Qunari.

-/- Written by Oghren on the account of holding the line and witnessing the force of the Qunari leader, Sten.

We ran on the main street, the Archdemon roaring and flying all over the place. We didn't hear from it for some time. It was most likely fighting at the main gates. Riordan hasn't taken it down yet. We took a few of the shortcuts to get there and we arrived in the Palace District.

"It's more open than I thought it was." Eren mumbled.

"We always have the horn boss."

"It's not cowardly to call on them you know?" Alistair said.

"I'll do it once we've gauged our enemy's forces." Eren said. I heard the Archdemon roar in pain. I saw it trying to fly before crashing at the top of Fort Drakon, a lone body falling to the ground. The Grey Warden's faces were ones of worry and rage.

"Riordan…" Alistair whispered. Leliana's hand went to her mouth. Eren's mouth set into a scowl.

"We can't let his sacrifice be in vain." We crossed into the street and the bodies of the guards that stayed littered the ground. Talen sucked in a breath.

"We can think about them later priss."

"…yeah…" We crossed the bodies towards the stairs were a horde of darkspawn were waiting for us. The Ogre on top grabbed a boulder and threw it at us. I felt some of the smaller pieces hit my face. We all began to run up the stairs. Eren and Alistair did a nimble move and got behind the Ogre, ramming their shields at the back of its knees and sent it tumbling down the stairs. Derek jumped from the stairs and slammed his hammer against its chest, caving it in. Talen sent out another fireball to the horde up top with Leliana letting out a barrage of arrows. I followed their line of sight and stabbed left and right, trying to hit as many as I can. I smashed the heads of any I saw, dented armors and stabbing in the places Zevran taught me.

"There's tons more darkspawn out in front. I doubt we'll be able to get through them." Derek said. Eren nodded and took out the horn that Riordan gave to him. He did one long note on it. We waited but we couldn't stop fighting since that horn caused the darkspawn to hear us.

"Wardens!" I heard. I recognized Nerion from the Dalish clans. They were the first to respond to our call. Eren gave him the horn so he could call out to more. The Dalish ran alongside us, their arrows wooshing through the air into darkspawn. There were two hordes waiting for us and we clashed. The Dalish quick footedness allowed them to twirl around the darkspawn, their daggers piercing at the darkspawn vulnerable spots. More soldiers starting to come in through the gates of the Palace District. It was a mess of bodies, blood, sweat, and fighting. I felt my knuckles hurting from all the fighting but I couldn't stop, not now.

We found them toward the end, Ogres stopped by the massive amount of arrow damage, Genlocks, Hurlocks, bleeding on the ground. I heard more cries coming toward us as the horn kept on going. Redcliffe soldiers found us. Eren gave a smile for once. We had turned the tide for once. The only part that was difficult was dealing with the shrieks. They came out of the shadows and the ground. The Redcliffe soldiers were able to get them with sheer strength. At last the battle was one and the gates to Fort Drakon was right in front of us.

"Wardens, what would you have us do?" The Redcliffe soldiers and the Dalish were all standing around, waiting for our direction.

"We'll need to get to the top of Fort Drakon, that's where the Archdemon fell." Eren said as the dwarven soldiers came up from the stairs. "Redcliffe soldiers, take point here, make sure that no more darkspawn pass through. "Nerion is it? Get your sharpest shooters to come with us."

"Hey you there! Get some more dwarves up here! We're going to need raw strength for this!" Derek said.

"What about some mages?" Talen wondered. They were the last to arrive. I recognized Petra and Kinnon from the tower, the others I didn't. "Petra."

"Talen."

"All I need are probably three more of you. Two healers, one primal." Petra nodded. Three more mages joined her.

"Right now we are on the edge of the end! At the top of that tower, lies the Archdemon! We will need to fight our way through these infested walls of darkspawn to get there! I need all of you to stand together! We will cut through, we will fight to reclaim this city, and we will defeat the Archdemon!" Eren said, rallying everyone. They shouted with conviction. I looked at Nerion and he nodded at me. Leliana and I shared a look.

"This will be the grandest tale of all." I smiled at her and the gates opened to go into Fort Drakon. We crossed through and there was a legion of Darkspawn waiting for us. The Dalish took their bows and made precision strikes at the darkspawn behind the barricades. The dwarves marched right through to the front, their axes, mauls, hammers were weapons of death in their hands, Derek running with them. Leliana stayed with the Dalish, Talen went to the few mages that became part of our group and did a combo of lighting and fire spells. Eren, Alistair, and I ran right into the front, ignoring the battle that was taking place behind us. We had to get the front doors cleared. I heard a roar in the air and a dragon thrall landed in front of us.

"Get to the doors, I'll handle this." Eren and Alistair ran around it. It tried to snap at them but I gave it a slash to their scales. They didn't appreciate that. Arrows flew and it found the dragon's wings. It roared in pain and I jumped on its back. It reared and bucked wildly. I stabbed in in the back and it roared in pain. I used that dagger to keep me in place as I used my other one to stab furiously on it. It ran against the wall, banging me trying to dislodge me. I didn't stop. I ran my dagger through the end of its spine. It stopped roaring as I disabled it. I jumped off, feeling a few cuts on my face bleeding freely. I wiped and went toward the doors, they were now clear.

"Now what?" Talen said, a few singe marks on his face.

"We continue on with our group. Nerion, have a few of your marksmen stay at the gates." He nodded and gave out the order.

"There's no doubt that the Fort is going to have darkspawn all over the place."

"Then we'll need more help."

"I shall sound the horn." Nerion said.

"Good. Let everyone pass into the Fort without the ones we have already stationed. Are you all ready?"

"We are behind you."

"Let's go." I said. Eren nodded. We walked into the door into Fort Drakon. I recognized it when I had to come in here in disguise to break Eren and Alistair out. Now? It was a graveyard with guardsmen and darkspawn bodies everywhere. We went into the room where the ballistas were and the stages were burning. As soon as we walked near the end of the room, shades appeared, summoned by a darkspawn emissary.

"Go for the lesser shades! Alistair with me!" Eren and Alistair went to battle the conjurer while everyone else focused on the shades. There were five in total but demons got stronger the more death there was. They jumped down, tackling anyone they could get their hands on. I punched the nearest one in the face. It recoiled and I stabbed downward on its head. It vanished from existence. I heard the cries of panic behind me. People don't normally battle demons.

"Just fight them like you normally would!" I shouted. The dwarves were the first to regain their bearings and used their powerful weapons against them. After the demons couldn't feed on their fear, we got the advantage. The conjurer was brought down thanks to Alistair's talents. This run was a lot easier than doing it in game. We had our allies around us constantly. We had people here fighting with us, to rely on and watch our back for us. I realized that this wasn't a game anymore. I may had information but this was real life for them. This was the life I'm living in right now and I was going to do anything to make sure that we won.

"How are you holding up Eren?" I asked.

"Tired but we still have more work to be done." I nodded. Our group opened the next door and I stopped Eren. I crouched down and saw the sliver of the trap. The barrel was right in front of me, probably rigged to blow. I cut the wire carefully and the trap was disabled.

"Good thing we have you around missy." That got the attention of the darkspawn that were at the ends of the hallway. An emissary and a shapechanger. Alistair and Eren took off, one on one with the others. The thing was that there was more darkspawn right behind them. Derek took half of the forces with Eren, Talen with Alistair. I followed Eren toward the emissary. He stopped its spell casting and I twirled around it, going into the room behind it. Undead were in there and I smiled. I did some slight footwork, evading the undead and simultaneously smashing the back of their heads. I tripped a few and some elves came to follow me. They knew what needed to be done without me telling them. There were more corpses down the stairs and I went down to meet them. It was exhilarating going around and around my enemies, evading, smashing, slashing. Zevran was right, it was almost like a dance. A brutal dance of death that made my heart soar. I couldn't deny it anymore. I was a fighter. I smashed the last of them with my boots and made my way back up the stairs.

"How is everyone?" I asked, our group coming together.

"The shapechanger, got me in the groin but I'm fine." Alistair said in a squeaky voice. Talen snorted at that.

"The undead are dead again. Let's go." Derek said. We opened the door to the storage and there were darkspawn corpses everywhere, even an Ogre's!

"Whoa, what happened here?" Talen wondered.

"Sandal?" Eren said. There he was, Sandal covered head to toe in blood that wasn't his own.

"Enchantment?" We all looked at each other before Derek started laughing.

"Oh kid, you are one lucky nug! Hey! One of you get him out of the tower. Don't know what happened to your old man kid, but he's probably back where it's safe." Derek said, patting Sandal on the shoulder.

"Warden!"

"Yep! Now get going."

"That was…random." Talen said.

"Either way we should be getting closer to the top." Eren said.

"Second floor here we come." I mumbled. We went up the stairs, our group following us. We ended up in another storage room, a couple of stray bodies here and there. I wanted to feel guilty but, at the same time, I felt petty. Eren and Alistair were forced to come here all because of what they were. A dark side of me felt like they deserved it even though I knew they were only doing their jobs.

"There are a few potions in these crates." Talen said.

"Take what you can find, give it to anyone who needs it." Eren said. We stayed there for a bit. I was surprised how many potions they had up here. There were a few that needed healing but, for the most part, we were all good.

"How are you feeling?" Leliana asked.

"The nervousness is gone. My focus is right in front of me. Kill darkspawn, kill the Archdemon, save the world." I said. Leliana giggled.

"I can't believe that our destiny has changed in such few hours."

"I know. It's going to change more after today. That I'm sure of." Even more so in ten more years, for both of us.

"We're continuing." Talen said. We passed a few walls that collapsed and fires raged inside. The fort was very spacious and the smoke didn't harm us. We opened the next door and there were two Hurlock alphas and a Genlock alpha. They didn't stand a chance with our little army. The dwarves crushed one, the other was stabbed in the eye by an elf, and the last one was frozen and shattered. We left the room and found the quarters that people used in the fort. We passed through those since there wasn't anything useful in them.

"Whoa." I said. We found the armory and there were tons of equipment in here.

"There isn't anything we can carry in here." Eren said. Talen stopped at the next door.

"You feel that priss?"

"Yeah. Darkspawn, in a line."

"Hey dwarves come on over!" Derek shouted. They all gathered at the door. "On my command, we'll show those monsters their hearts…Now!" He opened the door and we barreled right through. The archers got a few of us but we were too many in number to them focus on us. I came and bashed their heads in with my knuckles. Everyone got a chance to get a kill and they all laid dead. I heard a few grunts of pain as we got the arrows out of a few people. Talen and Petra were busy healing. I could tell that Talen was worse off than any of us. I've never seen him spell caste for so long with spells that consumed so much.

"Dead end." Derek said.

"There must be another door we missed." We retraced our steps and went into another hall way.

"Wait." Unfortunately I wasn't able to disable the traps when we got ambushed by darkspawn rogues. Everyone came through and, with so many bodies, they weren't able to land many backstabs. We were still in a disadvantage since we didn't have a lot of leg room. I found myself squished against the wall while everyone was trying to kill the darkspawn that appeared. It didn't take too long since there were only five of them. We shuffled into the next room where there were two main doors. Eren pushed them open and an emissary was waiting for us with two Ogres down the stairs.

"Time to show them what we're made of men!" Derek shouted, leading a group against one of the Ogres.

"Attack!" Alistair led another force against the emissary. Eren got his own and I followed him to the Ogre. I jumped off the stairs and sunk my blades into the Ogre. It staggered and threw me off into the group. A few more did the same tactic and we were able to bring it down to the ground. With so many dagger wounds, it bled to death in a short while. We ran up the stairs and the emissary was chopped to pieces on the floor. The four Grey Wardens with Leliana and I went to the main gates heading up to the rooftop.

"I can feel it. The Archdemon is right through here." Talen whispered.

"Heh, now that's a presence."

"We're finally here, this is happening." Alistair mumbled.

"No matter what happens, I am proud to be standing here with all of you."

"Same here boss."

"It is time." Leliana said. Eren nodded and we opened the gates to the enemy that we have all been waiting for.

* * *

**The Dalish, Mages, Dwarves, and everyone else finally fighting! :D**

**Shout out to Legendary Ranger Mode for following!**

**Dforce76: **_Thank you. I have felt that my writing has gotten a lot better since my first few chapters. Truthfully speaking, Nia will not be a part of Those Who Speak, but she will be part of Asunder. I personally don't follow any sport but my husband likes_ mma.  
**David Johnston: **_A ninja maid story does sounds cool. I haven't seen something like that happen in the DAO stories yet.  
_**Shattered Soul 2021: **_Amazing how Nia changed over the course of the story huh? She gets even more epic in the next chapter! :D  
_**ThelonewolfNT: **_Heh, dragon daddy's. I liked that quote, it's nice.  
_**GamerGeekGirl: **_As you know, I can't give out any spoilers. You'll find out her job soon enough. We're 2 chapters away. Awesome, last year of High School. I remember those days...I hope your homework goes well.  
_**Buggy300: **_I thought it would be a welcome change of pace especially since so many things happen during that last fight. Poor Riordan...  
_**EG: **_Yes Nia kissed Zevran! No i don't think I'll be taking a break mainly because I'm finished with Awakening and already on DA2. My hands just can't stop writing_

**Please Review!**


	60. The Archdemon's Death and Our End

There were tales of the Archdemon passed down through the years but those tales could not imagine the utter monstrosity that was it. Facing the eye of a fallen god, I felt my faith and my soul being tested. I could not deny that the Maker has sent me here for this moment and I prayed to Andraste to guide my arrows and my friends to victory.

-/- Perspective of Leliana on top of Fort Drakon

Nothing could have prepared me of what I was about to face on top of Fort Drakon. The stairs leading up to the top made me feel anxiety with every step. This was the end and I was about to face it. All of us running toward the top to face our greatest enemy. We ran out to the top and a few soldiers came flying into our view. I saw the Archdemon, a dragon like monster with spikes all across it and fangs that can easily tear apart a small body. The soldiers that were fighting it tried their hardest but one last of its tail sent them flying from the top. The archer's arrows wouldn't even make a dent into its scaly body. It grabbed one, crushed him, and threw him off the Fort. The Archdemon crushed another soldiers before letting out its colored fire and killing more with its breath.

"Maker's breath…"

"The blighter is huge…"

"Oh my God…" The Archdemon finally noticed us and it roared. The Grey Wardens didn't waste any time and ran toward to meet it. The Dalish and Leliana got into position with their arrows, the Dwarves following the Grey Wardens, and all I could do was stand there, terrified. I feared for my life. This wasn't like fighting the high dragon. The Archdemon was fear personified. My legs were shaking and my arms felt like jelly. I couldn't move. What could my flimsy daggers do against a corrupted god? It wasn't until I heard Eren's cry of pain that I broke out of that stupor. It got the first of our fighters with a tail whip.

"Come on legs…move…" I said to myself. It stomped on any fighters that came close to its feet. I heard more shouts coming from behind me, reinforcements marching towards the Archdemon. I bit my lip and my legs wouldn't obey me. I heard their shouts of pain as the Archdemon's breath came out, the mages that scurried behind me letting out all of their cold spells to quench the flames. I felt my heart in my throat. In the moment I was most needed, I was paralyzed. Then I felt something odd. The area where I couldn't feel anything since my death in Soldier's Peak, grew hot. There was a presence inside me, a small voice that I recognized. The fear, the paralyzed feeling abating and all I could feel was support, strength, belief, faith. As if someone was right behind me, knowing that they would catch me as I fell. There was no fear then. I was not afraid anymore so I got my daggers and charged.

I let out a battle cry as I weaved through the mass amount of attacking bodies to where the Archdemon was. It kept jumping from here to there, trying to defend itself from our army. With every jump we lost more and more people but we kept on fighting it. I recognized Alistair and Eren trying to gain the attention of the Archdemon, Derek using his massive hammer to attack the legs. Talen's body was glowing green with healing energy, trying to make sure no one fell.

With every tail whip, ten or more soldiers were thrown, only for more to take their place. The arrows didn't seem like it was doing much but for every twenty shot, one stayed in its hide. It readied a breath but the mages came to combat it with their own freezing spells. Everyone knew what to do and everyone was willing to die for it. I stayed behind the Archdemon, trying to stab at its joints or legs but its hide was tougher than my own blades. I switched tactics and decided that bludgeoning was best. My knuckles drew blood from the Archdemon. It did a tail whip and I felt myself flung across the Fort. I rolled into a wall. A few dwarves weren't so lucky and they flew off.

It jumped to another position and got an arrow near its eye. It drew flames again and I saw a few mages drink lyrium potions to magnify their powers. I saw Petra trying to heal as much as she could alongside Talen. There were so many bodies to keep track of. I saw Eren jump and slash the Archdemon across the face. It roared at him before it was hit by Alistair's shield. I ran toward it again and slid across the ground to meet the underbelly. I switched to my daggers and stabbed upward. I heard a foul shriek of pain and the Archdemon rose onto its haunches, with me in its sights. It launched at me but, by sheer luck, I was able to evade it. Unfortunately, it grabbed a Dalish elf and crushed it in its jaws instead. I lost a dagger to the underbelly and only had one. I searched and found a dagger on the ground. I grabbed it. I couldn't be without a weapon for now.

Another tail whip and it flapped its wings, causing everyone to fall from the air it was blowing in. It roared again, the sound piercing in my ears. I was disoriented and nearly stumbled toward the ground while the Archdemon did another tail whip.

"Darkspawn reinforcements!" Someone shouted. They came from climbing the damn fort instead of the usual way. Our allies got to the walls and started to beat them before they came to the top but a few managed to get by. Dwarves swung their axes to get them off, the Dalish used their daggers to combat them. I crushed a few with my knuckle. I saw a lot of blood coming from the Archdemon and it wouldn't call for reinforcements unless it was weakening. I knew what was about to come and I searched the top for the ballistas that were stationed here. I found one and evaded the fights the most I could. I got a few dings here and there that I knew were going to bruise later. I saw Talen's fireball at a group of darkspawn while I got to the ballista. That's when the Archdemon jumped to the side where we couldn't reach it. I saw Eren running toward me, slashing at any approaching darkspawn.

"Help me turn this thing!" I shouted. Eren and I cranked at the lever until the ballista turned toward the Archdemon. It kept on flinging colored fireballs at the most, not caring what it hit. The spikes were at my feet but darkspawn found us. Eren couldn't help me. I touched my chest and how hot it was. I reached for that power, just slightly. I felt it empowering me and I let out a breath. I picked up the spike like it was a toothpick and readied the weapon. I let it go and it hit directly where the Archdemon was. I felt something take off my helmet and grab my head. I squirmed before a darkspawn smashed my face against the ballista. I heard a shout and Eren rammed it off me. I spat out the blood from my mouth and kept on going with the spikes. The ballista shot and shot, the spikes protruding from the Archdemon. It was in such pain that all it could do was roar.

"Keep going! Don't stop!" Eren shouted. I didn't need to be told twice. Spikes after spikes, load after load, pull after pull, I kept on going until there was no more.

"I'm all out of ammo!" It didn't matter. I saw more spikes coming from another direction. I saw something creep behind me and I punch a Hurlock in the face. The whole top of the fort was a mosh of everything. I used the stolen dagger and slashed. Punch and slashed, punch and slashed. Twirled and evaded. There were so many darkspawn and I was getting tired even with the adrenaline pumping through my veins. That was when the Archdemon knew that it wasn't going to get any advantage from staying in one spot, pelted by spikes. It jumped off, back into the main fray.

"Forget about the darkspawn! Defeat the Archdemon!" Eren shouted. I heard a chorus of agreements and we all ganged up on the Archdemon. The blood was pouring out of it wildly and it stumbled as the mass of bodies all attacked it. I ran toward it, rolling around until I saw my dagger protruding from its underbelly. I grabbed it while more followed me in, getting the Archdemon in its weak spot. It jumped again to another spot but it didn't matter where it moved, there were soldiers waiting there for it.

I guess that's when it knew it was going to fall and it did one more last resort. It made a firestorm made of colored fire and it moved along the fort. Darkspawn, dwarf, human, elf, mage, it didn't matter. You were dead if you were caught in it.

"NO!" Derek shouted. The tide turned to its advantage as most of our soldiers were caught in the wicked attack.

"Leliana!" Talen shouted. Leliana was about to be caught in it before Talen jumped in to save her, shielded her from the fire. He screamed in utter agony as he let the fire go over his body. I was in a safe zone, standing still at all of the death. Eren, Derek, and Alistair all shouted in rage, going toward the Archdemon, with more than half of our forces gone. We were whittling it down. I went over and made my attack. It didn't matter where I hit, only that I was able to weaken it further. I saw Talen in the distance, stumbling, half of his robes gone and instead his flesh was charred. Petra came over to heal him, from his left ear all the way back to his skull was charred flesh. The Archdemon did a weak tail whip and got us all minus Eren. I saw him charge at the Archdemon with his shield. We lost more soldiers to the fall.

That's when it flapped its wings, making us all fall down. It jumped again. It was panicking, tail whipping, flapping, anything to make sure we didn't get near it. Our soldiers were nearly depleted, there was barely anyone on top. Alistair and Eren went toward it again but it tail whipped them. There was no way anyone would be getting close. It stumbled and fell onto the ground. No one was around to see it but I ran toward it. I saw one person get up, one that I didn't even expect.

Talen.

Talen with his body covered in pink splotches now looked at the Archdemon on the ground. He ran toward it, grabbing a longsword in its hand. He stood before it and plunged the sword into the Archdemon. He screamed either in pain or something else. A light shown from the Archdemon, bathing Talen in it. Leliana limped toward me, covered in blood. We both watched until the resounding shockwave from the death of the Archdemon flew us into the wall. I groaned in pain as I saw Talen's body flying toward the edge of the Fort.

"No!" All it took was a second, just a second and that powerful energy fill me again. I felt the shine coming from my body as I ran closer to Talen. So close, so close but his body fell from the edge. I wasn't going to lose any more people. I ran and jumped, grabbed his arm and sank my blade into the roof. I felt my arm dislocate but my body was burning in energy. I heard shouts and I looked up with the weird tunnel vision. I slung Talen's body over my shoulders and stabbed into the stone with my daggers, little by little until I got to the top. I saw Leliana take Talen from me and I was left with an overwhelming exhaustion. I sneezed as two major nosebleeds started to come out. I felt blood rush out of my throat and I coughed out blood.

"Nia!" Eren shouted. I shook my head. I looked at the Archdemon's corpse, its colored flames taking it. The few soldiers that we left looked on and soon I heard it, almost like a song.

The song of victory.

Cries, shouts, scream of utter joy came out from below the in the city. It was over. The darkspawn that were on the Fort with us ran with all their might away. I leaned against the wall, Leliana crying over Talen's body. Eren, Alistair, Derek looked down at the city. I felt the blood pouring over my face before feeling something else. I looked up. It was raining. Oh God, it was raining. It felt like nothing I have ever felt before. I felt tears mixing with the rain, calming down the flames of battle. I saw Eren stand in front of me, his hand in front. My hand barely gripped it when he pulled me into a hug. It was more like he was steadying me.

"We won." He whispered. I nodded and closed my eyes. I rested my head on his shoulder and let myself fall into the sweet abyss of darkness.

-/-

"Do you think she's dead?"

"Come on Derek she's only been asleep for the last day."

"Well you never know priss!"

"Do you feel…?"

"No, she's not tainted Alistair."

"Then why doesn't she wake up?" Eren asked.

"Maybe it was because the spirit got close to the Archdemon to attack it? Pitiful that it chose a human body. Those don't last long."

I groaned. My whole body was sore and it felt as if it was covered in bruises head to toe. Even the soft bed didn't remedy that.

"You're awake!" I heard Leliana said. I felt a pounding on my head like no other.

"Oh turn off the light it hurts." I grabbed my eyes and tried to push them in.

"Oh mi niña, I was afraid death had taken you for certain." I heard Zevran through the pain.

"Here let me help you up." Wynne's voice said. I felt hands push me up into a sitting position and I took my hands away from my eyes. I was in a room with various beds here and there. I blinked and rubbed my eyes everyone was there…everyone besides Morrigan. Leliana, Talen, Derek, Alistair were all on the beds. The friends that we left to hold the line looked better than the rest.

"Is this dream?"

"If it was I would be here only, not the rest."

"Zevran…" Wynne stressed.

"The Archdemon?" I wondered.

"Dead!" Derek laughed before groaning and holding his stomach. Shale sighed at his stupidity.

"We are all here resting for now. The battle is over Nia, we have won."

"Of course we're only resting until we can stand up and look over Eren's official betrothal." Alistair said. Eren huffed.

"What day is it?" I asked.

"Guardian 14th." Jowan said.

"Wow. Holy shit I've been asleep for a day!" They all laughed at me, a few groaning afterward.

"Welcome back, Kadan." I smiled at Sten as he patted my head. I heard a few barking and the door opened with Eamon, Teagan, and Anora right behind them. Alfred came in and put his head in Eren's hands.

"I'm happy that you are all well Wardens." Anora said.

"We are glad that everything went well." Teagan said.

"Well? We lost who knows how many at Fork Drakon!"

"And they will be all memorialized in a statue commemorating their sacrifice in the center of Denerim." Anora said.

"Oh." Derek said.

"Now for the matter of our betrothal Eren, there shall be a ceremony tomorrow in the Palace. You and all of your companions are welcome to it of course." Eren nodded.

"Get some rest. You have all earned it." Teagan said. I let out a breath before Wynne gave me my journal.

"My journal!"

"I knew you would have wanted it. I also brought you another once since you are almost done filling that one."

"Heee, thank you Wynne."

"Then it's best we get some more rest." Eren said, getting up. Talen scoffed.

"We've been in bed for the past day. I think I need a stretch."

"Or a blanket. It should at least cover its body. How disgusting."

"Says the walking golem."

"No you don't young man. You are lucky you didn't die from the pain of your burns."

"I'm tough." Then he shrieked when Jowan poked where half of his head was still pink.

"You jerk!" I laughed. Zevran took one of my hands. His face was one of sincere relief.

"Geez priss, out of all of us you got the most of the scars!"

"Will you be alright? You are missing one of your ears and half of your hair is burnt off." I said. Talen shrugged. It was true. Most of his blonde locks were gone and I noticed that they had to shave off another part, probably from the burns. He wasn't wearing anything either. Half of his chest was ok, the other was pink and most of his back as well. There was a long trail of pink flesh on his arm too. One of his ears was gone but the burn didn't travel down his face, only a part of his cheek.

"It serves as a lesson; always jump in to save the one you love." Talen said, looking at Leliana.

"Oh get a room!" Oghren shouted.

"We are in one!" Leliana countered. Everyone laughed.

"Everyone get some rest and we will meet you tomorrow." Eren chuckled. I gave him a look but he smiled at me. It was a sad smile. Wynne stayed to heal. Jowan, Sten, Zevran, and Shale left. Oghren and Derek shared his liquor. Leliana limped toward Talen's bed where she, Wynne, and Talen talked amongst each other. I wrote and I kept on writing everything that I remember. It was a lot to remember.

I saw the light from the window turn dark and I had to light a candle to be able to write. I can't believe I'm still here after everything. I faced the Archdemon and won…no one back home would probably believe me.

"Wynne can you help me get back to my room?" I said.

"You can stay here with the rest."

"You abandoning us Nia?" Talen joked.

"No. I need to get something that's there." I was wearing some simple pants and shirt. I grabbed at the boots that were near and Wynne helped me to my room in Eamon's estate. I was a walking bruise. It hurt to walk.

"Thank you Wynne." I went over to my drawers and pulled out my phone.

"What is that?" Wynne asked.

"Something that's going to blow your mind. Let's go back." I hobbled back with Wynne to our resting room which I noticed were the servant's quarters. I went back and Leliana had her head resting in Talen's lap. Derek was snoring in his bed and Oghren was passed out on the floor.

"What's that?" Talen asked.

"Something. Here." I took off the cover and got the battery from inside. "Can you give this a very light shock, like when you rub your feet on a rug then touch something metallic."

"A light shock?" I nodded. Talen touched the battery with a finger. There was a mild shock and he gave it back to me. I put the phone back together and pushed on the start up button. I waited until it work.

"Yes!"

"Ok will you tell us what that is?"

"Sure." I sat down on Talen's bed. "It's called a phone back in my world. We didn't have access to magic like you do here so instead we relied on inventions. This can help you talk to someone on the edge of the world in real time, capture portraits in real time, and you can even write, do math, and almost anything on this." I pulled up the camera and took a picture of Talen. I showed it to him on the scream and he yelped.

"Amazing." Wynne wondered.

"I can't believe it, it's almost like magic."

"But it's not. I can't really explain to you how it all works. That part I didn't read about when I looked through useless information."

"I look ugly." Talen groaned.

"But you are still the same person Talen." Leliana said, laying her head in his lap. Wynne and I shared a look. I went back to my bed and Wynne left the room. I looked through my photos. My kids, my husband, the few videos I have. My son's laughter, my daughter's smile, my husband and our wedding day. I wrote down all I could. It was time to get some sleep.

-/-

I haven't been in the fade for a very long time. When I woke I was lying on the floor in a sort of light bed. It was shining with light. I felt someone's hand pat my head. I felt warm and loved. That was all I could remember before I woke up. I heard someone snort and Oghren was still passed out on the floor. Derek snored lightly. Talen and Leliana in their own respective beds. I groaned as I felt my bones crack as I stood up. I heard the door open and there was a servant girl there.

"Oh you have awoken my lady?"

"Just now yeah. I was wondering if I could have a bath."

"Yes! Let me take care of that for you!" She squeaked before going out of the door again. I smiled and sat on my bed again. It was almost like a dream. The Blight was over. I looked toward my friends. It wasn't going to be long before we all went our separate ways. The servant girl came back and I was led to a small private area. I bathed and let the warm water relax my body. I didn't stay long and washed. It seemed like they got off as much blood as they could but I needed a good wash. I got out and the servant place a fancy simple blue dress. I groaned. I didn't want to wear a dress. If there was one thing I missed about home were my t shirts and jeans. I put it on. It had long sleeves and was a bit poofy on the bottom. I ran my hands through my hair until I came back to my room. Leliana was already there.

"I'm guessing you did this for me?"

"Oh and it looks perfect on you!" She had on the noble clothing that they usual had. "Come, I'll do your hair!" She sat me down on a mirror. I was amazed at how different I looked. She ran the comb through until she made small braids and bunched them together. There wasn't much she could do since my hair only reached slightly passed my shoulders and was thin as hell. "There. Now, we can't keep Eren and the others waiting."

"They're already at the palace?" I said, getting up. She laid some nice ribboned shoes at my feet and I put them on.

"Yes they are. We cannot be too late, yes?" I shook my head and we went out. Talen was wearing robes that covered most of him and an apprentice hat. I nearly laughed at him.

"Yeah, yeah, I look funny. Come on, everyone is already there."

"Wow you guys get ready quickly."

"It's not that. Everyone wants to eat and party." Talen laughed. We got into a small carriage. I saw the devastation of the city while we went to the Palace. People were dragging the corpses out and setting them on fire, trying to move and clean the houses that collapsed. It was going to take a while but Denerim will stand again. We went past the main road and came in front of the palace. We went in where the Landsmeet took place and the hall was filled with people.

"You look beautiful mi niña." Zevran said. He was wearing noble clothing as well. Leliana giggled as Zevran took my hand.

"Where's Eren?"

"They are getting him ready for the announcement." I saw Alistair and Derek in ceremonial army near the throne. Alistair noticed me and waved. I waved back.

"I can't believe all of us are still here." I said.

"It is truly a wonder isn't it mi niña?" I leaned against him. My body felt bruised even after the bath and rest.

"Hey Zevran?"

"Hm?"

"Thank you." Zevran chuckled.

"And for what mi niña?"

"Being there for me, for staying." I said looking at him.

"I would not have left you alone." I drew closer and kissed him. It wasn't one of love but out of relief.

"Thank you for staying alive." He smiled at me and I heard the announcement. Anora and Eren came through as everyone looked on. They walked up to the were the Revered Mother gave her blessing on both of them. Everyone cheered and clapped.

"My people of Ferelden, we are here to celebrate a joyous celebration. The day we fought back the blight. To that I owe my thanks to the one who led the charge against the Archdemon and killed it. Remember him as an inspiration to us all." Anora said. I looked at Zevran in confusion. Talen was the one that killed the Archdemon, not Eren. Eren joined her in front of the throne. "Ladies and gentlemen, may I formally present to you my betrothed, who shall be your new King, Eren Cousland." We all clapped and cheered. "But I cannot ignore what you have done. As an engagement present I offer you a boon of your choice."

"There's no need Anora. I would not have made it this far without my fellow Grey Wardens. I suggest you give the boon to ones that pushed me thus far."

"I shall honor your decision. Derek Brosca, Talen Surana, what may be your boon of choice?"

"I want soldiers to come and help my people your majesty." Derek said.

"It shall be granted." Talen rubbed at his head piece.

"I want the Circle of Magi of Ferelden to be free your majesty." Wynne and I shared a look and Anora looked nervous for a second.

"It shall be granted. Are you sure that you do not want a boon, my lord?" Anora asked Eren.

"If you can, I want the sacrifices of the Grey Wardens to never be forgotten. We shall decide that at a later date."

"That we shall. Let it also be known that the arling of Ameranthine, once the land of the Howe's, will be granted to the Grey Wardens. There they are free to rebuild. And what of you, my lord? Will you stay with the Grey Wardens?"

"No, I will stay with you. You will need all the help you can get." Eren said.

"That is correct. It will be…rewarding to have you here. You and the rest of the Grey Wardens should make an appearance for our people before they storm the castle." Anora chuckled. "Go with your companions to the guard once you are ready." Anora said. A few more clapping and cheering before it settled down. Servants started to bring out food and drinks for everyone. I went over to where the Grey Wardens were.

"Talen you were the one that killed the-" He put his hand over my mouth.

"It's ok. Let Eren take the credit. We talked for a bit. The Circle will be free and Eren will be the one who killed the Archdemon." Talen explained.

"I can't believe you asked that of her Talen."

"I'm not going to let the same mistake I did with Jowan happen again even if I have to make the Circle again from the ground up."

"I hope you know what you're doing Talen." Wynne said.

"I do."

"So more help for the dwarves huh?" I asked.

"Might as well. We lost too many of our men up in Fort Drakon."

"What else are you going to do Derek?" I asked.

"Well, probably get started on making my own Grey Wardens to fight the darkspawn in the tunnels and then see if I can help the casteless on not being casteless."

"How about farmers?"

"Puh! You're joking missy!"

"No, I mean, why don't you farm underground?"

"We lost how to a long time ago and there aren't any more papers that dealt with that kind of stuff."

"Oh, you want me to help then? I read about it a long time ago back home." Derek looked at me with incredulity.

"You know how to farm underground!?"

"It doesn't take much. Besides, it'll be better for you anyway since you have access to ground water that has loads of minerals and a bunch of artificial light. Plants only need light not the sun you know?"

"Good! Then you'll be coming to Orzammar to show us how to do this!" Derek said, slapping my back. I groaned loudly. "Oh sorry." Eren came down and Anora went to talk to the other nobles.

"So, King Eren huh?"

"It feels…awkward." We all laughed.

"I am sure you will be a fine king Eren." Leliana said.

"Just no maniacal laughter ok? Then that will make me wonder if you're suited to it." Alistair said.

"If you will need any assassins, you will know who to call."

"Of course. Mind yourselves." Derek laughed. Talen gave Leliana a quick kiss and Alistair gave me a pat on the head as they all went to go with the people outside.

"Well we're here, let's get to drinking!" Oghren shouted.

"Is that really all you care about?" I said. "Hey aren't we missing someone? Where's Jowan?"

"He is not feeling well. They went through the joining early this morning. He survived but the slurry gave him an upset stomach." Wynne said. I laughed really hard. Sten came by with a platter of cake.

"Cake?"

"It is delicious."

"Remind me to write down all my recipes for you."

"Of course."

"So you're going back to Par Vollen after all of this?"

"The Blight has ended and the Grey Wardens have won. I have gotten the answer for the Arishok. I will stay for the festivities and then I will leave."

"I'm going to miss you Sten."

"I would offer to travel to Par Vollen alongside you but you have other plans I take it?"

"Yeah."

"Then the next time my people come to conquer this land, I will make sure not to look for you on the battlefield."

"I…thank you Sten."

"It has been an honor fighting with you Kadan."

"I feel the same way Sten." I said giving him a chest to fist bump. I felt Leliana wrap her arm around me.

"Now let's go and join the festivities shall we?" I rolled my eyes. Oghren was already drinking heavily at a table.

"There you are girly! Want to try some of Oghren's home brew?" My face wrinkled before Wynne chuckled.

"Do not worry, it is not as bad as he makes it sounds." I shrugged and took a drink. It burned but it left a nice after taste.

"Mmm, not bad."

"There's more of it to go around!" Oghren laughed.

"You might as well. We don't know when we will have festivities like this again." Zevran said.

"Go on." Leliana said. I looked at everyone and nodded. I took a few more and I was pleasantly happy. The door opened to cheers as our Grey Wardens came back to us.

"I have never seen so many people happy at us." Talen said smiling really big.

"It feels good don't it priss!"

"Already getting drunk Nia?" Alistair asked.

"Slightly. Oh! Hey someone get Sten! I got an idea." I got a barrel and everyone gathered together. I got my phone out from a pocket I had in the dress and went to the timer on the camera.

"What is that?" Derek wondered.

"I'll tell you about it later. If there's anyone that can make a camera work in this world, it's probably the dwarves. Ok everyone get together, get together. Perfect!" I went to the barrel and got a cup to steady it. I looked at the screen and it was a perfect shot. I put the timer on and ran toward everyone.

"Alright every get ready and say cheese!"

"Cheese?" Alistair said. Leliana laughed.

"Ok the light's on!" I felt everyone laugh and smile.

"Cheese!"

The picture that I took that day was one I'll never forget.

* * *

**And we have come to our conclusion. Mind you there is an epilogue! Also the first chapter of DAYS OF OUR TIME (which is the sequel) will be uploaded at the same time as the last chapter. Please read the last chapter of this story before moving on to the next because you won't understand a thing! Next upload will be in two days, then it will go back to the three day schedule per the norm.**

**Shout out to jerseydanielgibson, JjEldred, and pettysylph for favoriting/following!**

**PetalsOfSin: **_I missed you and I'm glad you stayed_ :D  
**Buggy300: **_Apparently the creators forgot about Sandal and Bodahn and were shocked when the fans were sad that they couldn't see them. Maybe I'll include them just so we can see them again later on :3  
_**Shattered Soul 2021: **_The dragon age world is so strange isn't it? Why is it called the Archdemon anyway? I've never wondered.  
_**Chimera Spyke: **_Oh no this isn't the end. This is the beginning of a much grander tale that spans all games and asunder. And I have it all here in my head! Muhahah!  
_**Thank you GamerGeekGirl, EG, and Dforce76 for your reviews!**

**THE NEXT CHAPTER IS THE LAST ONE! :D PLEASE REVIEW!**


	61. Interlude to Our Time

9:31 Drakonis 5th

Nia sighed overlooking the gardens of the palace. It has been a long journey since her time in Highever. Being at court was a welcome rest but one that she found to be long. She thought of the one who joined her in her spirits of the festivities. A man that would never once again return to her side. Nia wondered if that man will ever once again-

"Leliana what did you write? This is nothing that I experienced! I was out helping the people of Ferelden, not sighing like a girl in love. Not only that, Zevran is still here." I said, reading over Leliana's journal after she had mentioned she had one. Leliana giggled.

"Well it makes for fine reading, no?" I laughed and shook my head. We were waiting at the front of the Palace grounds for a carriage to lead her to the small army of Templars and priests that all gathered to go to the Urn.

"Oh Leliana never change…It's going to be quiet without you here. Wynne has been creating some flack now that the Circle is free. It's already been a month and people are already starting to question it. Poor Talen has his work cut out for him."

"It is true but he says he enjoying meeting all the new mages that have come from all over that are studying there. Irving has already made him a Senior Enchanter."

"Wow that quick? Poor Talen, Senior Enchanter, Grey Warden, him and Jowan constantly traveling to Soldier's Peak to find out about Avernus' potion." Leliana chuckled.

"He is doing remarkably well. He has wrote to me in a letter that he will join me as soon as I reach the Urn."

"I'm glad you two are doing fine." I heard the clacking of horses hooves against the ground and the carriage to lead Leliana away came in front to me. "Don't forget to write ok? Even though I'm going to be traveling as well. Just send everything here." Leliana chuckled.

"Of course. I will miss you my sister." Leliana said.

"Me too." We put our foreheads together and she closed the door to her carriage. I sighed and went to the stables. I recognized Lily as Alistair put a saddle on her.

"Oh, Leliana has already left?"

"Yeah, gone to her own adventure. I'm proud of her. She's going to do wonders over at the Temple of Sacred Ashes." I said, leaing against the carriage.

"Of that I have no doubt." Alistair said.

"Ah there you are mi niña Hermosa." Zevran said, coming up next to me.

"Hey Zevran. You got all your stuff ready?"

"Of course. Traveling will give the crows pause as they eventually figure out my ruse."

"Do we have to take the assassin with us?" Alistair whined.

"Yes Alistair, we're taking Zevran with us. It's going to take more than just the two of us to hunt down the darkspawn camps over in the Southern Hills. Then off to Orzammar, the Circle to see Talen, and anywhere else in the Bannorn where the darkspawn have settled after the battle." I said, listing off the places we needed to go. "Besides, it's going to take a while for the Arling of Amaranthine to pass down to you, Warden Commander Alistair." Alistair chuckled bashfully. Eren was going to stay in Denerim to rebuild it along with Anora which made Alistair the Warden Commander. Derek was busy joining people in Orzammar and Talen can't keep in one place.

"I had hoped to catch you before you left." Eren said, Anora with him.

"Hello my liege, and your Queenliness." Anora gave me a small smile. We grew close over my month stay in Denerim.

"At least that sounds better than Queen Annie."

"Queen Annie rolls off the tongue though." Eren said. They got married through the courts although the real wedding will be later.

"Here are your papers that you will be needing on your journey." Anora said, giving me a cylindrical container.

"Papers?" I wondered. Anora looked to Eren and he chuckled.

"You have not told her?"

"I was hoping for it to be a surprise?"

"And what is that mi amigo?"

"Go ahead Nia. Read them." I shrugged and opened it. I took out a roll of papers that shocked me slightly. They were enchanted with minor magic. I read through the script and began laughing.

"What, what does it say?" Alistair wondered.

"I am…surprised at your reaction." Anora said.

"Oh because this is priceless!" I cleared my throat. "Ok, ok, I'm good."

"Well?" Eren said.

"What does it say?" Alistair asked. I took the papers and hung it up in front of both Zevran and Alistair.

"Read it and weep boys you are now looking at Nia Cousland, Princess of Ferelden."

-/-

9:31 Drakonis 19th

Dear Eren,

So far the bands of darkspawn we've been encountering haven't been numerous, thank God. Southern Hills had quite a number of them since this is where they were most concentrated after Lothering fell. We were able to reclaim some of the farm land, no doubt Anora would love to hear that. Talen and Jowan have been using their combined talents in order to make something of a purifier for the ground. Ok not much of a purifier but Talen can move the corruption to something else. Talen said that some of the things in Avernus' research could help them. If that's the case, we might be able to save Lothering. A few of the Dalish elves, after the battle in Denerim, have settled in the Korcari Wilds. Some of the farmers are apprehensive while others are accepting. I've been trying to get them more on the accepting side.

Nerion has been helping with that. You remember him right? He was a skilled Dalish hunter that sounded the horn during our battle against the Archdemon. He fought with the Redcliffe guard and his opinion on humans got better. He and I are trying to make sure the relations between his clan and the farmers stay at a relative peace. It's amazing how people change when they start understanding each other.

So far Zevran and Alistair haven't been wanting to kill each other, thankfully. Mostly because I'd probably wring their necks if they even tried. They've seen what I could do to a darkspawn skull, I don't think they want to be at the end of my fist. After cleaning up the farms, we're going to be heading over to Orzammar. Derek wrote that he got a lot of volunteers that would go through the joining. He was thinking of calling their group the Keepers of Orzammar. It flows off the tongue rather nicely don't you think? He's also very interested about the underground farming that I mentioned back in the party. Well what I can remember about it anyway...

Anyway I've heard that Anora and you are making preparations for the Royal Wedding? Can I be the flower girl? No I would suck as a flower girl. It would be my luck that I would fall face first on the rug.

Give plenty of treats to Alfred for me.

-Nia

P.S. I think people are starting to wonder about this whole Princess thing, there are a few rumors going around. It's kinda exciting.

9:31 Cloudreach 14th

Dear Eren,

Would you believe it if I said that Derek tore down all the old houses in Dust Town to make it the official place of the farms? Well he did it. Oh and thanks for the fertilizer, horse shit is the best for the soil. Derek went to the assembly about the whole farming thing I was telling them about. After they heard about what I knew, they all jumped on the chance. Dust Town has been cleared away and all, I mean ALL, of the casteless have been helping on getting the fields ready. Also thanks for all the seeds, we'll need them.

There are a few bronto tamers in the city and they have been helping us plow the field and fertilize it to make it ready for the first few seeds. Not to mention the diggers that have been looking for the underground rivers to lead into the farms. After I did my explanation on what were irrigation systems, the dwarves immediately picked up on it. It's amazing what happens when these guys band together. Derek has also been telling and showing the dwarves my phone. Unfortunately I couldn't help in that aspect but we'll see what they come up with on that end.

Zevran and I have been training a few of the dwarves that have survived the joining. These guys will be the first wave to push back the darkspawn that have settled in the Aeducan Thaig. Bhelen wants it cleared. If the farm system goes right, they'll need a lot of space. Oh and yes the soldiers that you've sent came here have been helping as well.

Alistair also wonders when are all the papers for the Amaranthine post is going to go through? I've heard a few Grey Wardens have already stationed there in Vigil's Keep. He's getting a little ansty in the pantsy to get going and start on rebuilding the Grey Wardens. Weirdly enough since he hates being in a position to lead.

Anyway, we're going to be staying here for a while. I'll need to lend Derek all the help he needs to train and to get the farming project on its way. After this, we'll be going over to the Circle. Talen wants to see if Alistair can train the Templars to use their abilities without lyrium. That's going to go over well, I'm sure. Can you tell I'm being sarcastic?

Fergus sent me a letter to know where we can put a memorial for Duncan. I haven't been to the city recently. I think he wants to put it where the old kennel master was. Remember? That small spot of land away from the city that had a nice over view of a valley? I think that would suit Duncan. It would make Alistair happy anyway.

Shale and Wynne send their greetings. They came by for a while as Wynne is trying to find more information on helping Shale regain a body. I don't know how they'll do it but I'm hoping for the best.

Also that thing that happened in the Pearl? Never mention it again. Ever or I will smack you. Yes I remembered you evil, evil person.

-Nia

9:31 Bloomingtide 1st

Dear Eren,

The Circle is so vastly different! They fixed it up really, really good. I mean there are still a few scars and some meaty parts in the upper levels but those spots are super high and hard to reach. The atmosphere is also brighter than what it used to be. Talen did a system of visitation. Mages can have their family visit on occasion and even stay, for a small period of time. Greagoir had a fit when he learned about it though. He can't say much though since the Circle is technically free and Talen and Irving are in charge of most of it already.

You remember that one Templar in that weird magical cage and stuff? Cullen. They sent him away to the Free Marches in the city of Kirkwall after he almost had an altercation with Talen. Speaking about Talen, he is totally embracing his Senior Enchanter name. He's teaching all the people who are studying the creation tree with his own brand of unique blood magic healing. The Templars got worried with that one. Alistair had to calm them down by showing that this type of blood magic is not influenced by demons. Nonetheless, only those who have been harrowed are allowed to practice it. They also need to have constant supervision. These mages don't have a fighting bone in their body though.

Talen is trying to get all of his practice down into a series of tomes. He said that it would have to go through the College of Enchanters and see if it would be able to be sent out to other circles. He doubts it of course. Taking a patients blood, mixing it with your own magic, and then pouring it inside to figure out what exactly is wrong with the person on the inside, wouldn't be seen as healing as he said. He's taking all my knowledge that I know of the human body and brain and fusing it with his brand of healing. You can't call it creation anymore at this point but he can't figure out a name for it yet. We'll see.

Jowan isn't allowed in the Circle of course. He's been staying at Soldier's Peak for now. Oh speaking about Soldier's Peak, we had to go there after we saw a meteorite (that's a rock falling from the sky) make a crater in the ground. We had it sent over to Soldier's Peak and Mikhael made a beautiful great sword with it. He says that the wielder will eventually come. I don't know anything about that though. Jowan and Talen have also been experimenting with the joining potion. Talen said that if he's successful, he can make a joining potion that will have a ten percent chance of killing someone. That means one in ten will die and the rest will join. Much better odds don't you think? The experimental fertility potion is in the works. Talen said that he would send it to you once he tries it out. He hasn't told me about that yet but Leliana assures me that nothing is going to happen between them. Maybe on other Grey Wardens people? I'm not sure. He didn't explain all of it to me.

I hope the court is treating you well. I know that the nobles have been asking about me, trying to make you rescind my position. Who knew that you adopted me before you became king? When were you going to tell me this? You're a good secret keeper at least. The nobles do know that it's just a title right? I have no power, no say, no right to the treasury and stuff. Well just be careful.

Say hello to Queen Annie for me (don't mention that to her).

-Nia

9:31 Solace 8th

Dear Eren,

Can you believe that the dwarves did their first harvest? It was completely successful! I'm so happy! Bhelen said that all the casteless that helped with the farms are now part of a new caste: the Farming Caste. Derek wrote to me that I also share half of the profits from what they're getting. That wasn't my idea either. I didn't know anything about it before he sent me a letter. I wrote to him why would he do that and he reasoned that the only reason we were able to raise the farms was due to my knowledge. We are now co-owners of the farms. Good thing too since my title is in name only and Queen Annie doesn't let me take out of the treasury.

Zevran left as well. After we got through some of the darkspawn in the Bannorn, he told me that it was time for him to go. It's only me and Alistair traveling now. We're doing good so far. We're thinking on heading to the Temple. I heard Genetivi's research finally has been confirmed by the Chantry. Leliana says that the Temple looks absolutely stunning now that they have swept away the ice. It's going to be an experience for sure.

Oh and I've heard that the potion was successful. I'm going to be an Aunt! This is awesome! I think you've heard but we're staying in Redcliffe now. Redcliffe has changed since we left it. It's amazing how the people have rebuilt it. It's almost completely different from what we first saw. I heard that Eamon gave his title to his brother Teagan. He likes having Alistair around the Castle. They've been catching up after all the time Alistair has been away. It's good. Alistair has a sort of family to return to. I heard that Arl Eamon has been visiting his son in the Circle. Connor has been learning a lot although he is hesitant about his magic. Teagan said that he's been getting nightmares about what really happened in the village. We'll have to tell him the truth one day.

I've heard that Anora has been using my name around ever since the success of the farms in Orzammar in order for the people to accept a commoner princess with no noble blood. I've been reading the things she's approve and many farmers and merchants have talked about me. At least they don't recognize me for now. Also thanks for that small tidbit on the Amaranthine Arling. We'll be over in Denerim soon enough to collect the papers and the person you've chosen to become a Grey Warden after scouring through the Hinterlands for more bands of darkspawn.

I hope to see you soon.

-Nia.

* * *

**I told you there was a reason why Eren became king. So we have reached our end. I couldn't have done it without all of my readers, my followers, and visitors. When I started this in october, I didn't think I would be continuing it beyond Origins and then I played Inquisition and everything changed. Now 8 months later, Days of Our Lives has been concluded. Over 300 reviews, 30k views, and many followers and favorites, this is by far my most popular story of all.**

**And I did it all for you. And also me because I love dragon age and my imagination won't deny all the potential creativity with the world.**

**Shout out to R3d0X for favoriting.**

**Congrats Shattered Soul 2021 for the 300th review!**

**Shattered Soul 2021: **_Nah, Talen is my favorite and he's the only one besides Alistair that comes back in future stories. I'm glad you liked all of it and thank you for your reviews. I loved them since they went in depth and asked important questions_ :3  
**Buggy300: **_Trust me I've played the game about 15 times, complete, there are ballistas at the sides when you fight the Archdemon. It makes the fight easier but you have to be careful because the darkspawn will attack you while you shoot at the Archdemon. And thank you for that explanation. I'm going to use those texts to explain something way later in the story :3 Good thing too because the second volume of the World of Thedas has the short version of the Chant of Light. It answers many_ things!  
**Ariel Wild: **_Thank you. I try to make sure that everyone can feel that sense of immersion.  
_**EG: **_Thank you and the next installment is called **Days of Our Time.** I will upload it after this one.  
_**Dforce76: **_Mages have it good huh? Where do we go from here? Well...the sky is the limit!_

**Thank you all for reading. The next story is DAYS OF OUR TIME. Please review :3**


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